Mox Quest
by Overactive Mind
Summary: BBRae, with a Magic: the Gathering twist. A globespanning quest for Raven's freedom to express emotion. Set between Seasons 4 and 5. Chapter 30: TEH END!
1. Materials: the Gathering

Hiya. I am and have an OveractiveMind. This is a reprint of my first Teen Titans fic. Since I've been on hiatus from for so long, everyone who was reading it probably forgot about it, so I'm starting all over. The story has some Magic: the Gathering flavor, but I'll keep the card game references to manageable levels for the uninitiated. This is a BB/Rae fic, so stop reading now if you've deluded yourself into believing some other pairing. -waits- Now that all the losers have left, let's get this started!

DISCLAIMER: I don't own Teen Titans, Magic: the Gathering, or any related intellectual properties. Any relation to real or fictional persons is entirely coincidental and also really cool. Side effects include dry mouth and sweaty palms. Cash value: 1/20 of a cent. Do not fold, spindle, mutilate, expose to bright light or water, or feed after midnight. Many will enter, few will win. Limit 1 per customer. Results may vary.

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She hadn't really wanted to do it. When she first found the details of the ritual in one of her older books, she'd dismissed it as pure fantasy. An entity of pure magic that could and would grant any wish? Please. And yet, she had tried everything else. Incantations, ancient artifacts, mystical sigils, and yet every time she thought about him, something exploded. This was essentially her last hope, so she was forced to do something she knew she'd regret later: She asked for help.

The elevator hissed open at the garage, where Cyborg was once again polishing, retouching, upgrading and otherwise pampering his "babies." He was so obsessed with installing the in-dashboard Wafflematic (A/N: That auto-waffle thing from "Cyborg the Barbarian.") for the T-Car that he didn't hear anything until someone cleared her throat.

"Cyborg," said Raven, "I, uh, need help with something."

The half-robotic teen looked up from the batter injector he was working on, smiled, and replied "Anything for my favorite assistant grease monkey! What'cha need?"

Raven hesitated. The material components of the spell were somewhat flexible, but they had to be very powerful. She decided to start with the simplest request. The gray girl held out her hand, which contained the fragments of the ring of Azar used in the battle against Trigon. "I need you to repair the ring," she droned trying to hide her growing anxiety about the other item she'd need from her friend, "and you can't technologically enhance like you do with everything else." Cyborg frowned, but nodded. She continued to the more difficult task. "Next, I need one of your power cells..."

"WHOA!" exclaimed a shocked Cyborg, "OK, not adding my signature touch to something you want me to repair is one thing, but a power cell? It ain't like I've got an infinite supply of the things!" He saw Raven's hurt expression, and calmed down a little. "I'm sorry, Raven, but without a charged power cell, I'm essentially, well, dead."

"Can't you recharge them, or make more?" she asked, desperate.

"The cells have a limit to the number of times they can be recharged before wearing out permanently, and the materials to make new ones are extremely rare and expensive. Even Robin's connections with Bruce Wayne he pretends he doesn't have couldn't get enough to make a functional cell." Cyborg sighed, and continued, "I'm sorry, Raven, but I just can't let you have one." He watched the telekinetic as she sulked back towards the elevator, waited until she was halfway, and smiled while saying, "Unless, of course, you tell me why."

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After Cyborg finished what she needed, Raven again referenced the ancient tome were she found the spell, deciphered the remaining material components, and prepared herself for an even more onerous task. Sighing, she left her room and walked to another door in the Tower. Hesitantly, she knocked on the door.

The door flew out, as did the room's occupant, who caught Raven in an embrace that would've likely snapped the half-demon in two had she not telekinetically reinforced her ribs. "HELLO, friend Raven!" exclaimed an ecstatic Starfire.

Barely managing to breathe even with the assistance of her powers, Raven managed to grunt out a "Hi, Star" before extracting herself from the Tamaranean's vicelike hug. Even though she was now free of Starfire's physical strength, Raven still had to deal with the orange girl's nauseatingly upbeat personality.

"Friend Raven, I am overjoyed to see you visit my room of the bed. Please, come in," rambled Starfire, largely shoving Raven into her airy, bright, and otherwise unRavenish room. "Why have you chosen to visit me here? Do you wish to discuss various styles of hair? The bands of boys? To you perhaps desire to initiate the 'girl talk?'"

Starfire probably would've continued to blabber until the world ended (again,) but Raven managed to get a line in edgewise. "Actually, Starfire, I wanted to borrow something."

This only encouraged the alien. "Glorious! What is it you wish to borrow, friend? Hair accessories? The discs of compactness? Mustard? Clothing? My recipe for Stewed Qlorznogs?"

"Actually, I wanted to know if you had something that could keep one of your Starbolts glowing after you released it." replied Raven, who was beginning to question the wisdom of asking Starfire for help.

Starfire's expression sank a little, disappointed that she could neither spend any of the "girl time" with Raven nor share the rubbery, sour pleasure of stewed Qlorznogs with her. However, her near-permanent optimism quickly recovered. "Of course, friend Raven!" she exclaimed, "What you request is known as a Tlem'gark, I shall fetch one." With that, Starfire flew to her closet, where she threw out a variety of strange alien artifacts, pictures of Robin, ingredients for Tamaranean recipes, pictures of Robin, jars of Silkie food, and pictures of Robin before pulling out what was evidently the Tlem'gark. It looked vaguely like a crown, a ring of brass, or something like it, with three prongs rising out of the main structure at regular intervals. It was engraved with scenes of climactic battles, and looked incredibly valuable.

"Starfire, I can't take this," Raven gasped, marveling at the exquisite piece before her. "It's too beautiful, what if I break it or..."

"Worry not, friend Raven," replied Starfire, "I have other Tlem'garks, and you are both a dear friend and an ally in the kicking of evil butt. Besides, you and your love deserve such a fine..."

"My WHAT?" exclaimed a stunned Raven. Her sudden shock at the mention of love caused Starfire's mattress to be briefly encased in a black aura before exploding in a shower of feathers and springs. "Wh-Who said anything about love?" Raven quickly composed herself, but was still greatly concerned. Had Starfire figured why she needed the device?

The orange girl wrinkled her brow in confusion and explained further, "But friend Raven, the Tlem'gark is traditionally given to one's greatest love." She lit the device with a Starbolt, the green orb somehow staying in place without fading between the three brassy tines. "The shining energy within the Tlem'gark represents the pure and everlasting light of mutual affection. Did you not know?"

Raven sweatdropped, and replied, "Uh, no, I just, uh, needed it for a spell." 'Well,' she thought, 'that's part of the truth.'

"So, you are not in love?" inquired Starfire.

Frantically waving her hands, Raven practically shouted "No! No! Of course not! How could I ever be in love with Beast Boy? That's ridiculous!"

Starfire once more looked at her friend in confusion. "But...I did not mention friend Beast Boy."

Raven, shocked at what she just blurted out, let out a burst of nervous laughter, causing a few jars of Silkie food to explode and splatter their contents on the walls. She sputtered, "Of-Of course not! Um...bye now!" With that, she grabbed the lit Tlem'gark and tried to rush out of the room. In her haste, she slipped on some of the zorka berry-flavored goop now coating the room and slid into the wall. Again laughing nervously, Raven rushed out the door and ran to her room so fast she practically plowed through the door.

RAVENSROOMRAVENSROOMRAVENSROOMRAVENSROOMRAVENSROOMRAVENSROOM

Having recovered from the crushing embarrassment of the Tlem'gark incident, Raven prepared the ritual necessary to use the spell. A pentagram was drawn in mystical powder, and at each point of the star lay an offering.

At the topmost point was the restored ring of Azar. To its right was one of Cyborg's power cells, fully charged and glowing with blue energy. Below the cell was a seemingly normal pebble. In reality, Raven had extracted the stone from Nevermore, so deep in Timid's realm that it was the first boulder in geological history with an inferiority complex. To the left of the silicaceous sadsack was the Tlem'gark, still glowing with Starfire's energy. Finally, above the brass ring was what resembled a floor tile with leprosy. It was really a square foot of...matter chiseled out of Beast Boy's room. Judging by the way it was attempting to squirm out of the pentagram, it would serve its purpose excellently.

With everything prepared, Raven began the chant that would summon the entity who could maybe, just maybe, fulfill her greatest desire. "Azarath Balshan Corian Daru Elfhame Femeref Ghitu Halam Icatia Jukai Keld Llanowar Metrion Numai Oxidda Panopticon Quirion Rakdos Skyshroud Tolaria Uktabi Verdura Wyluli Xanthia Yavimaya ZINTHOS!

With the final word, the entire pentagram let loose a blast of golden light. Once the blinding glare faded to manageable levels, Raven looked into the glowing shape. She was shocked to see a figure within the pentagram. "It worked!" she shouted.

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Please read and review! I'll update sooner if I think people care!


	2. The Ritual's Result

Hello again! Since I've already written the first thirteen chapters of this fic, updating shouldn't be a problem for a while. Before the story begins, I'd like to give some love to my anonymous reviewers:

unnamed guy : Thaks!

TDG3RD: Thank you very much. Is two days soon enough?

Now then, one disclaimer between us and the next installment. Here goes:

DISCLAIMER: I don't own Teen Titans, Magic: The Gathering, the Cthulu mythos, Jams Apparel, Geico Insurance, or a 50-foot tower of lime-flavored Jell-O. Anyone who wants to sue me has way too much time on his or her hands and needs to get a life, since I don't plan on getting one anytime soon.

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With the final word of the incantation, the entire pentagram let loose a blast of golden light. Once the blinding glare faded to manageable levels, Raven looked into the glowing shape. She was shocked to see a figure within the pentagram. "It worked!" she shouted.

"Of course it worked. It would be rude of me not to let it work." replied a rather sarcastic voice.

"Huh?" Raven looked into the shining light, which had faded further, allowing her to clearly see the being within. It was a humanoid figure, 7 feet tall, seemingly made of pure, living gold. However, the awe-inspiring effect was somewhat ruined by the sunglasses, flip-flops, Hawaiian shirt, Jams, and rather silly sombrero. "Wait a second, you are the embodiment of the five magics?"

"Obviously. That wasn't a ritual for summoning fifteen pounds of shrimp cocktail you just used. What did you expect?"

Raven frowned, and explained, "I don't know, something impressive, like a pillar of energy, or some giant animal surrounded by flames..."

"or some non-Euclidean construct of tentacles, fleshy pads, and eyeballs that would give you an excuse to use the word 'eldritch'?" the being concluded. Raven nodded, and the festively clothed being sighed. "Every time I incarnate, I always get the same thing. 'I that you'd look weirder', 'I thought you'd have seventeen eyes', 'I thought yogurt would ooze from your pores.'"

"Did you make that last one up?" asked the skeptical half-demon.

"Sadly, no. Funny one, that guy. Spoke to cheese and got responses." The entity shook its head. "Anyway, that isn't important. I am indeed Pentagram, master and embodiment of the five magics. The fact that I was enjoying a snooze on a tropical beach doesn't change that. Now then: Where, when and why am I?"

"Uh, you're on Earth..."

The being sighed again, and removed the sunglasses. His eyes were golden as well. "My dear, there are more Earths out there than witty comments I have to make about them, and believe me, that's a lot. If you could please be more specific?"

Raven was stunned for a moment. First what looks like some tourist from the Bahamas comes in response to the ritual, and now he's saying there are almost infinite Earths? "Well, you're in Titans Tower, in Jump City, does that help?"

He tapped his lower lip in thought (A/N: Anyone else do that?) and said "Titans Tower, Titans Tower...hmm. Ah, yes! Quick question: which former sidekick with a mask, Batman's or Green Arrow's?"

"Uh, Batman."

"Good. World end yet?"

"Does it look like the world ended?"

"Don't be glib." he scolded, "Looks can be deceiving, especially when demons are involved."

Raven frowned. "Yes, the portal was opened. And don't treat me like a child."

"Fair enough. OK then, place and time established, so you would be..." his eyes flashed blue momentarily, "Raven, correct?"

"Yes." She paused "Wait, what were the eyes for?"

"Hmm? Oh, just a quick peek into your mind," he said nonchalantly.

"WHAT?" she exclaimed, and one of her bookshelves fell over, scattering ancient tomes across the floor. How had he bypassed her mental defenses so easily? "How dare you read my mind without my permission? Who do you think you are?"

Pentagram ignored her and examined the bookshelf. "Interesting, emotionally driven telekinetic powers, still somewhat beyond your control," He turned to look at her face, "Yet you are clearly of mortal lineage as well. You are a half-demon, correct?"

Once again, Raven was astonished. He recognized the origin of her powers? "How did you figure that out so fast?"

He waved his hand dismissively, as if determining Raven's ancestry less than five minutes after meeting her was something a child could do. "I've seen that sort of thing before. You tend to see everything eventually in my line of work. So, I'm guessing you want better control over your powers? Not being able to express emotion has to be quite irritating."

Raven was starting to get annoyed. Irritating? How dare this insolent being dismiss the very essence of her life like it was a muscle cramp? "Listen, I'll just dismiss you if you aren't going to take this seriously!"

"Hit the nail on the head, I see," he chuckled. "Okay, no need to get huffy about it. I'll have you set up in a jiffy." With that, he changed his garb into a long, flowing golden robe, pulled up the sleeves thereof, and pointed his open palms at her. They suddenly glowed with magical energy, and trails of white, blue and red began to stream outward and encircle Raven.

As the energy closed around her, however, a barrier suddenly appeared between the magical force and Raven. As the magic touched the barrier, it sent tendrils of black surging through the glowing field surrounding the half-demon. Recoiling from the sudden assault, the magic dissipated, evaporating into the air, and momentarily leaving behind several instances of a familiar symbol. Raven saw them as they evaporated. "The Mark of Scath!" she whispered, terrified that her father's symbol still lingered on her.

"Ow" muttered an annoyed Pentagram. "You could've mentioned Trigon was your father, that tends to make a difference in these things."

"What, didn't you see it in my mind?" Raven hissed. That massive intrusion of mental privacy still rankled her.

"Oh, let it go, will you?" He rolled his eyes. "I only saw your name and that of some guy named Garfield." Raven looked shocked. Pentagram continued, "What? The information was pretty much impossible to avoid, there was practically a shrine devoted to the schmendric."

"I see," she murmured, blushing a little. "So, what does my father have to do with giving me control?"

"Quite a bit, I'm afraid. Demons as powerful as Trigon are quite resistant to most magic. That tends to be passed down. Judging from the symbols that my magic left behind, both Trigon's genetics and will are preventing me from granting you control. I'll need to be fully incarnated to pierce his shield on you."

"Fully incarnated?" she asked, "But you're standing right here."

"Ah, but not all of me is. The strength of the offerings determines how much of my power and being are brought to the site of the ritual. More power, more me. To penetrate the barrier your father placed around you, I'll need to fully incarnate here, and there's only one way to do that."

"What is it?" She had to have control, otherwise...

"You'll need the Moxen."

"The what?"

He continued, "The Moxen are five exceptionally powerful jewels, solid magic, the source of each magic on a plane. In fact, you're wearing one."

"What?" Raven was shocked. She had a jewel of solid magic and never knew it?

"Yup, the gem on your chakra is none other than the Mox Ruby of Azarath. It is rather small, but then Azarath was never known for it's chaotic nature."

"So, I could use it to fully incarnate you?"

"Unforunately, no. The Moxen weaken greatly when removed from their home plane, and that particular gem is the lynchpin to what control you have now. Giving it up wouldn't help either of us. You'll need to use all five of Earth's Moxen in my summoning ritual, and then I'll be able to fully incarnate and I can help you."

Raven raised an eyebrow; "You could help me by bringing them here. I don't want to go on some clichéd quest if I can get some all-powerful entity to bring the stuff to me."

Pentagram smiled, "Very clever. I love it when people think, it's so rare. Unfortunately, that fiasco earlier drained most of the energy from the offerings you used. I don't have the power necessary to call the Moxen forth anymore, but I have good news."

"Let me guess," Raven deadpanned, "you just saved a bunch of money on your car insurance."

"Surprisingly, no." Pentagram smiled. "Geico doesn't give policies for vehicles in other dimensions. No, the good news is that I can tell you where the Moxen are." He held out his hand, and magic energy coalesced into his palm to form a rolled scroll, which he handed to Raven. "That scroll will show where each Mox is currently, and what it looks like. Once you retrieve a Mox, the location and appearance of the next one will appear on the scroll. Once you have all five, a pentagram and a more powerful incantation will appear on the back of the scroll. Perform the ritual, I'll show up, and everybody's happy. It already has the location of one revealed."

Raven opened the scroll. It was largely blank, but on the far left of the strange material there was something written in a strange opalescent ink, as well as a drawing of a teardrop-shaped gemstone. She recognized the language immediately. "This is..."

"Yes, Azarathi. Each entry will be in a different language, I just hope you're multilingual." Pentagram's image began to flicker, like a television with bad vertical hold. "Oh dear, I'm running out of energy. I have to go. Good luck. See you soon!" With that, he gave a peace sign and dissipated, transforming into millions of colored sparks that faded a second later. The summoning materials were all corroded, drained, or otherwise sapped of energy.

Raven realized she was kneeling, and stood up. She was ready. She would go forth and retrieve the jewels, then get her wish. And then...she blushed again, and something rattled ominously. It was time to begin her quest.

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Well, that's it for now. Don't worry, Raven isn't going it alone for this quest. I won't let her. Thanks to the forty-nine (or fewer) people who checked out my ficcy's triumphant return. See you next chapter! Now review, or Pentagram will slow-roast your liver.

Pentagram: I will, you know. He has me in a binding contract.

Thank you, Pentagram. Bye now!


	3. The First Reading

I live! Sorry, but I've been rather busy directing a play. No time to write when you have actual power to wield. However, now that my thespian endeavor has ended, it's time to get back to the ol' keyboard.

Now then, bit of a heads-up before I start this chapter: There will be a bit of Robin-bashing, but this is a plot-necessary chapter, so Robin fans will have to bear with me. (And if you're a RobRae shipper, WHY ARE YOU STILL READING THIS? Shoo, shoo.)

Disclaimer: I don't own Teen Titans or Magic: the Gathering. If I did, I'd have prevented the cancellation of the former.

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Raven realized she was kneeling, and stood up. She was ready. She would go forth and retrieve the jewels, then get her wish. And then...she blushed again, and something rattled ominously. Well, she'd get to that after she had control. It was time to begin her quest.

Just then, she became aware of a furious knocking on her door. "RAVEN!" shouted the knocker, in a familiar voice. Suddenly, the floor shook, and a large green gorilla knocked her door down. Returning to his human shape, Beast Boy rushed in frantically and exclaimed, "Dude, what's been going on? I've been knocking for, like, fifteen minutes! There was this huge flash, and Cyborg's energy scan thingy went all weird, and there was someone else in here!"

As the shapeshifter caught his breath, Raven was able to respond. "Um, sorry Beast Boy. I was just performing a spell. It, uh...rendered me deaf for a little while." 'Crap,' she thought, 'I was so caught up in talking to that weirdo, I didn't think about the others noticing! Wait...Beast Boy was worried? About me?'

As Raven sank deeper into introspection, Beast Boy frantically waved his hand in front of her unresponsive face. "Hello? Raven? Earth to Raven, we've lost your signal."

She blinked, realized she was lost in thought again, and apologized again. "Just thinking about something, Beast Boy. I-I'm going to go out for a bit." 'Yeah,' part of her muttered bitterly, 'I'll just go on a quick jaunt around the world, pick up some all-powerful artifacts, and be back in time for dinner. No problem.' Sighing, she walked past him and made for the elevator.

Beast Boy watched as she moved past him, marveling at her. 'Say it, you moron, SAY IT!' He struggled to say the three little words he first realized about the dark girl after visiting the psychological landscape of Nevermore (or, as he put it, "that really freaky place in Raven's mirror.") But it seemed impossible that she'd even tolerate his feelings, much less share them. And now, she was talking with...with some magic guy, AGAIN! He couldn't believe that she'd do this again, not after Malchior. And another voice, raw and primal, lying underneath the moderately civilized tofu addict, merely gave a threatening growl. "Raven, I still heard someone else in here..." he managed.

"Don't worry about it, Beast Boy. Just, just get out of my room." And with that, she sulked off, preparing herself to abandon her friends for who knows how long for the love of one. He simply looked on sadly as she walked away, the girl of his dreams who would soon only be seen in them.

But another, freshly returned to his beach, watched the scene, and decided that was not to be. With but a wave of his hand, he rethreaded the fabric of reality, and things _changed_.

Raven drifted down the hallway, her eyes cast downwards, and suddenly walked into something. Large. And quite hard. "Ow..." she moaned, and looked up.

Cyborg smirked at her, cocked an eyebrow, and said, "Now where do you think you're goin'?"

Suddenly, Starfire popped up behind his shoulder, and joined in the new conversation. "Yes, friend Raven, where are you headed with such haste?"

Raven stared at them. She was sure she hadn't heard footsteps, or even the whooshing air currents that accompanied Starfire as she wafted down the hallways. "I'm just going...out."

Cyborg maintained his sarcastic grin and replied, "I'm sure. And that huge flash of light that made my energy sensors go off the charts has nothing to do with you going 'out'?", adding some air quotes to the last word. The half-demon nodded. "And, of course, that power cell I gave you has absolutely no relevance to this trip either."

Starfire picked up on Cyborg's sarcasm, and continued, "And I am certain the Tlem'gark I lit for you has not contributed to this most unexpected and spontaneous excursion, yes?"

Raven frowned. No one was going to stop her from her mission. Not even her teammates. "You can't keep me from leaving." she declared.

The half-hardware human seemed surprised at this, and replied, "Keep you? We just wanted to come with!"

The Tamaranean nodded. "Oh yes, we heard you conversing with the Pentagram, and the task you must perform so you may express emotion freely. It was most enlightening, and we wish to join you in your quest!"

Raven narrowed her eyes. "I can't let you come with me. This is my problem, not yours, and you need to stay here to protect the city. Besides, only I can read the scroll. Unless either of you know Azarathi..."

Cyborg rolled his eyes and rebutted, "Please, you aren't doin' the 'tragic, lone sufferer' act while we're around. Besides, Robin got so Slade-crazy 'cause of that flash, he said he'll be patrolling the city for three days straight!"

Starfire bowed her head and continued, "Yes, friend Robin is doing the 'freaking out,' sadly. And did not the Pentagram say the scroll would be written in many languages? Surely, Raven, you will encounter at least one you will be unable to read."

"And even if Star and I don't come with," stated Cyborg, "you have to take Beast Boy with you."

"What? Wh-Why him?" Raven demanded, pulling up her hood to hide the sudden flush that was creeping up her face.

Cy sighed, and continued, "Please, you two are more pathetic and obvious than Robin and Star...uh, no offense."

Starfire frowned, but quickly shook it off. "I forgive you, friend Cyborg. After all, friends Beast Boy and Raven are clearly slger'klin'rvneq." Both goth and droid looked at her blankly for a moment, and she continued, "I believe the Earth term is 'crushing,' yes?" The largely metallic teen nodded enthusiastically.

Raven's blush deepened, making her look like a cherry in the middle of a tub of blueberries. The shock of Starfire's last statement had pulled the metaphorical rug out from under her mental feet. "Beast Boy...with me...but...how" she mumbled, still shocked by the idea that someone could ever love someone like her.

Cyborg literally picked her up, looked at her eye to eye, and said, "You are going on this thing with Beast Boy, and that's final. No arguments, no excuses, no kidding." She looked both at him and deep within herself, nodded, and phased through his arms. "Where you goin'?" he asked.

Raven looked back at him, smiled, and said, "I'm getting Beast Boy."

Cyborg and Starfire smiled at each other, happy that their friends would soon finally admit their true feelings for one another. It was a truly beautiful scene, at least until Robin, leaving a trail of crazy-person drool, came careening through the hallway shouting "SLAAAAAAAAAAAADE!" at the top of his voice.

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After Robin was safely secured in the his new, padded Slade-investigation room (filled with happy colors and devoid of anything sharp or pointy,) the other Titans congregated around the scroll, to see where they were going. Raven carefully read the sparkling, luminescent symbols before her, and said aloud the message they formed:

_"The first of the Moxen that ye seek_

_Ye shan't find in bog or on peak._

_Look to the stars, for among them you'll see_

_The white Mox Pearl, 'cause it's orbiting thee._

_The tower of Justice, the energy source_

_There's the first step to ending remorse."_

"OK, so what does that mean?" asked Beast Boy, scratching his head.

"It means we're paying a visit to the Watchtower." replied Raven, who had read enough mystic riddle-poems to qualify as an expert in their translation.

Cyborg was elated. "Really? Justice League HQ, home the most awesome tech off Earth? Ah yeah, baby, road trip!"

Soon, the T-Ship was prepped, and the launch countdown began, courtesy of Cyborg. "10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1...WE'S OUTTA HERE, BABY!" With that, the ship launched, setting a course for the home of the greatest collection of heroes since the Iliad: The Justice League Watchtower.

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Well, the Titans are off for adventure, but will await them as they attempt to collect the Mox Pearl? Will Pentagram be pulling anymore _deus ex machinae_? Find out next chapter! Sorry to any Robin fans who didn't like my treatment of the Boy Wonder, but I always thought his sanity was fragile at best, and figured a spontaneous blinding flash of magical light would be enough to shatter the poor boy's psyche.

Furthermore, as a reparation for the prolonged delay, I'll be posting a new chapter every weekday this week. Thank you all for your patience. You've read, so you clearly have time to review. Press the button!


	4. Storming the Watchtower

Told you all I'll be doing daily updates this week. The things already written up to chapter thirteen, but I'm making you wait because I'm delightfully evil. Now, as a final preface, this portion of the fic is chronologically placed after the point in JL Unlimited after Brainiac/Luthor is defeated and the Watchtower is set to be decommissioned and deconstructed. Enjoy!

DISCLAIMER: I don't own Teen Titans or Magic: The Gathering. The odds of me owning either are about as good as winning the lottery while being struck by lightning, hit by a meteor, and seeing Michael Jackson doing something normal. I do own Captain Cameo, who has the power to show up for no apparent reason whenever you need some random guy to say a quick line.

THATISNOTDEADWHICHCANETERNALLIEANDWITHSTRANGEEONSEVENDEATHMAYDIE

Soon, the T-Ship was prepped, and the launch countdown began, courtesy of Cyborg. "10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1...WE'S OUTTA HERE, BABY!" With that, the ship launched, setting a course for the home of the greatest collection of heroes since the Iliad: The Justice League Watchtower.

Even though the hallowed satellite was being brought down after the world was almost destroyed (again,) it was still an impressive sight. The facility gleamed as a chance ray of sunlight glinted off the steel and glass. But something seemed wrong...

Beast Boy, surprisingly, was first to notice the oddity. "Dude, is the Watchtower supposed to be all crystal-y?" He had a point. The sunlight revealed a strange patina of crystal that, while thin, seemed to cover the entire satellite like a minimal amount of amber preserving a giant mosquito.

Cyborg frowned, concerned by the unusual state of their destination. "Definitely not." he replied. "I'll try contacting them. The com systems should still be online." He pressed a few buttons and spoke into his headset. "T-Ship to Watchtower. T-Ship to Watchtower. Come in, do you read me?" Only static could be heard in response. "I repeat, T-Ship to Watchtower. Please respond. Is anyone there?" Cyborg's concern was growing. What was going on? "This isn't good. We have to find out what's happening in there."

The others' reactions were mixed. Raven only nodded, acknowledging her duty to her fellow heroes and quashing the worry that was beginning to creep through her heart. Beast Boy gulped back his worry and agreed, but it was clear he wasn't as enthusiastic about going to the Watchtower as before. Starfire, however, was quite open about her concern. "M-Must we continue into the very scary and foreboding Tower of Watching?" she whispered shakily.

"It's our job, Starfire. We help those in need," answered Beast Boy.

Raven was impressed by the green teen's sudden display of maturity. 'I expected him to be the one who'd want to back out. Wow.' She began to sink into a daydreaming daze, when the sounds of a distressed communication blared through the ship.

"All available ships! All available ships! This is Captain Cameo! Abandon Watchtower! I repeat, Abandon Watchtower! All Javelin Ωs, prepare main laser cannons for siege bombardment!"

Cyborg stopped the T-Ship in the same orbit as the Watchtower, so the two would seem motionless to one another. The four Titans watched as the numerous Justice League ships charged their weapons, the cannons glowing with restrained energy. In a single instant, every single ship fired on the crystalline chrysalis. The lines of destructive power streamed towards the Watchtower, but once they hit the shining crystal, they ricocheted off the surface as though they had hit a mirror. The blasts rebounded away from the evidently well-protected base and screamed back towards their points of origin. The Javelin Ωs frantically escaped the blasts, and the surface of the Watchtower's cocoon wasn't even scratched by the assault.

"Dude!" screamed Beast Boy, ruining his earlier moment of maturity, "What's that stuff made off?"

"I don't know." replied a worried Cyborg. "I can't even scan it. It's deflecting the sensors."

"It's made of magic." declared Raven.

"HUH?" Everyone turned to her, shocked at such an idea. "You mean it's like your shield thingy?" asked Beast Boy.

"Yes," she replied, "only far more powerful. Only exceptionally powerful white magic can exhibit such powerful defensive properties. The Mox Pearl must know we're on our way, and I don't think it wants to leave."

The shapeshifter grinned. "Well, at least we know we're in the right place!"

"Yes," said Starfire, "but how do we enter if that strange magic does not allow anything to get past it?"

"Like this," declared Raven, "Azarath Metrion Zinthos!" With that, Raven's avian soul-self reached out from her body and encompassed the entire T-Ship. Once it finished spreading out, it surged forward, almost invisible against the void of space. Once it reached the luminous crystal, it passed through with barely any resistance. As the T-Ship docked, the crystal it passed through faded and blackened, as though it were diseased.

INADOCKINGBAYINADOCKINGBAYINADOCKINGBAYINADOCKINGBAYINADOCKINGBAYINADOCKINGBAY

The Titans stepped out of the ship, some more shakily than others. "Warn me next time you're gonna do that!" exclaimed Beast Boy, looking even greener than usual. He noticed no one was paying attention to him, and then saw why. "Duuuuuuuuuude..." The docking bay was sheathed in the same luminescent crystal as the outer portions of the Watchtower. Beast Boy moaned as something occurred to him. "Ah man, does this mean Raven's gonna hafta phase us through everything?"

_Not if I can help it._ The strange voice wasn't heard, but sensed by some feeling that defied description. It sounded like the smell of yellow. It felt like the taste of justice. _You who have invaded my sanctum of truth and justice, feel my wrath._

"I'm guessing that's the Mox Pearl?" guessed Cyborg. As the mechanoman finished his comment, pieces of the crystal surrounding them grew and rose, forming strangely humanoid figures. In a matter of seconds, a dozen crystalline soldiers, swords drawn, faced our heroes. "Man," moaned the cyberteen as he prepared for battle, "this was supposed to be a quick trip." The soldiers charged forward, and Cyborg quickly broke out of his revery. With a thunderous "Titans, GO!" he began the battle, firing his sonic cannon at the faceted warriors. The beam struck one of the soldiers, causing its crystal structure to resonate at the same frequency. The vibration quickly shattered the being into innumerable shards.

The others were having a harder time with their inorganic foes. Starbolts passed right through the transparent creatures, and even Starfire's alien strength couldn't shatter the beings. Beast Boy was struggling to find a form that was both strong enough to destroy the beings, yet small enough to fit in the cramped space. Worst of all, the soldiers seemed impervious to Raven's magic. Black auras surrounded the creatures, yet they simply walked out of the fields unfazed and unharmed.

Obviously, the creations weren't simply standing around as the Titans struggled against them. Though Cyborg had already shattered four of them, they seemed to regard Starfire and Raven as the largest threats. One threw its sword at the Tamaranean, who eeped and tried to avoid the blade. Though she couldn't get out of the crystal weapon's path, she was only knocked out by the hilt. After she fell to the ground, the soldier that brought her down and two others congregated around her and formed a solid hemisphere of crystal around her, trapping her like a bug in a paperweight.

Shocked by her imprisoned friend, Raven shouted "We've got to get out of here!" Avoiding soldiers as they dove at her, she grabbed Beast Boy, and called to Cyborg, "Come on!" He struggled towards her, but three more soldiers grabbed the high-tech hero and trapped him as well. Cursing, Raven cried, "Hold on tight, Beast Boy!" and phased through the floor, headed for the source of the crystalline menace: the Mox Pearl.

BACKINTHETOWERBACKINTHETOWERBACKINTHETOWERBACKINTHETOWERBACKINTHETOWER

Robin had largely gotten over his latest bout of Slade madness, but was still drooling significantly. Suddenly, Silkie found his way into the rubber...er, special Slade investigation room. Yeah, that's it. Slade investigation room. Robin turned to face the larva and, his mind becoming progressively unglued, exclaimed "Robin! What are you doing here! The city needs you! I'll just stay here and squirm around, eating everything in sight!" With that, he began squirming around the room, convinced he was Silkie. Silkie shrugged as well as a mutated moth larva can, and dashed off to Robin's room to retrieve his uniform, eager for a chance to go "Robinning."

ENDCHAPTERFOURENDCHAPTERFOURENDCHAPTERFOURENDCHAPTERFOURENDCHAPTERFOUR

I know, my fight scenes are horrible. Still, I had to give BB and Raven some alone time. There will be some fluff next chapter, and don't worry! Cy and Star aren't dead, just preserved. You'll see what the crystal prisons did to them next chapter. See you then, and remember: If you had time to read it, you have time to review it.

Afterword: A blueberry virtupie to the first person who can identify where my first section break (the big string of capital letters) came from.


	5. The Pearl's Last Stand

No one bothered to review the last chapter. I'm sad. Sniff…

Well, enough of that, let's see how everyone's favorite pubescent paragons are doing.

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Teen Titans, Justice League Unlimited, Magic: the Gathering, the paraphrasis used below as a section break, or anything else other than a multitude of ideas. So there.

THEREVOLUTIONWILLNOTBETELEVISEDBUTWEBCASTTHEREVOLUTIONWILLNOTBETELEVISEDBUTWEBCAST

Cursing, Raven cried, "Hold on tight, Beast Boy!" and phased through the floor, headed for the source of the crystalline menace: the Mox Pearl. The two passed through a multitude of crystal-lined floors, leaving a trail of blackened, corroded crystal as they went. Suddenly, and with the force of running into a brick wall that wasn't there a second ago, Raven's soul-self hit a barrier it couldn't pass through. The ebon bird dissolved, leaving behind Raven and Beast Boy like the first pre-hatched eggs in avian history.

"Dude, why'd you stop?" Beast Boy complained, rubbing his head. "It felt like I tried to break a cement block with my head."

The dark adept looked around nervously. "Somehow, the Pearl figured out how to keep me from phasing through the walls. It's adjusted the crystal the cancel out my powers." After noting her companion's blank expression, she sighed and tried again. "The boss locked the door at the end of the dungeon."

Beast Boy's expression brightened. "Ohhhh." Everything was much simpler when Raven explained it in video game terms. "Why didn't you say so?"

Raven gave a little smile. He was always kind of cute when he acted moronic. She quickly shook herself, though. This wasn't the time. She pointed at a door completely encased in the strange crystal and continued, "We have to find another way to get in there."

Beast Boy smirked. "No problem. Wait a minute!" He looked at her worriedly. "Those crystal things Star and Cy are trapped in-are they..."

The half-demoness shook her head. "No, thankfully. They're still alive, just in their own little worlds..."

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Starfire was overjoyed. A beautiful field of flowers to frolic in! Many adorable and friendly Earth animals to play with! It was though her greatest dreams were being fulfilled. "Oh, there is only one more thing for this all to be perfect!" she exclaimed.

"Hey, Star!" called a voice. She turned, and was amazed to see Robin, astride the R-Cycle! "Get on," he continued, "we're going for a ride."

"Robin!" she cried, ecstatic, "When did you come to this wonderous place? I had thought you were still in the room of rubber...I mean, investigating Slade!"

He grinned, melting her heart. "The others let me out, now hop on."

She eagerly flew over and sat on the motorcycle. As they roared down the path, she suddenly came to a decision: Now was the perfect time to say _it._ "Robin, there is something I wish to tell you..." she began.

"I know," he said, "and so do I." He smiled again, somehow looking behind him while keeping the motorcycle in perfect control. Starfire didn't pause to even consider how this was possible. Most of her brain had fused from sheer joy at "so do I." Somehow, their helmets had vanished, and she closed her eyes, eager for what she'd always dreamed of...

INTHEOTHERPRISONINTHEOTHERPRISONINTHEOTHERPRISONINTHEOTHERPRISON

He'd always dreamed of this. He pushed himself out from under the latest car he was working on, wiped off the assorted fluids that had dripped on him with a handy towel, walked into the adjacent bathroom, and splashed some water on his face. He looked up and beamed into the mirror. An overjoyed, entirely organic face beamed back.

"Vic, honey!" called a feminine voice, "Dinnertime!"

"Comin', sugarpie!" he replied, taking the stairs to the kitchen three at a time. He opened the door and beheld the other three of his four greatest loves: Jinx, Bumblebee, and enough meat to clog the arteries of a small nation. "Boo-yah!" he cried, and began gorging himself on the succulent flesh as both women smiled lovingly at him.

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"So," Beast Boy reviewed, "they're living out their greatest fantasies? I thought this Mox thingy was evil."

_WHAT?_ boomed an enraged voice. _HOW DARE YOU CALL ME EVIL? I am the Mox Pearl, embodiment of all things just, pure, and sacred. This citadel of justice shall forever orbit the world, so that those who do battle for the virtues which I represent may ensure that the world remains free of the criminal scum that infects it."_

The changeling listened to this with a look of great confusion. "Um, so who's the good guy here?"

Raven narrowed her eyes. "We are. Good guys don't hijack satellites and populate them with mindless armies of crystallized mana."

As if on cue, a squadron of angelic beings began to rise from the crystal. _Silence, spawn of Trigon,_ spat the Mox Pearl, _What do you know of good? You, who nearly destroyed all order on this world, who put this entire universe in-_

"SHUT UP!" The echoes of the cry rang through the crystal-plated hallway. Everyone, the speaker's partner, the crystalline angels, even the Mox Pearl's awareness turned to the speaker. He panted, and repeated himself. "Shut up about Raven! You don't know what her life has been like. You never had to spend your life repressing every emotion you ever had, 'cause you were afraid it could destroy your friends! You never thought you were pure evil, or a monster, or creepy! She's been through more crap in her life than you'd ever even dream of!" Beast Boy panted, out of breath from this shocking soliloquy.

Raven was in complete shock. Beast Boy was standing up for her? He was sympathizing with her? What was going on? "Beast Boy..." she mumbled, shocked.

_So, _the Pearl stated coolly, _you claim she has endured more hardship in less than two decades than I knew in eons of watching over this pathetic little mudball? You honestly believe this abomination, this result of a demon lord and a foolish Satanic wench, could really know more agony than I could?_ The telepathic equivalent of a derisive snort passed through the two Titans' minds. _You know nothing. I have had to sit and watch you chaotic, corrupt humans ruin every institution I inspired. I was there when the Goths overran the Romans. When the French peasantry rose up and created the Reign of Terror. When Archduke Ferdinand was assassinated, and one of the bloodiest conflicts in your pathetic history took place as a result. _The stone's bitterness was so pronounced, the crystal coating the hallway began to flash and pulsate. _Now feel the righteous fury of millions of years spent watching you idiotic apes!_ With that, the four crystal angels flew towards the Titans, wielding huge, razor-sharp swords.

"I'm tired of hearing you talk." growled Beast Boy. Morphing into a gorilla, he grabbed an angel in each arm, and slammed them together, making them shatter into innumerable pieces. Raven also regained some composure. She was apparently able to control these beings with her powers, and so she sent the remaining angels careening into each other, reducing them to shiny powder.

After, the winged figures were crushed, shifter and adept alike faced the doorway the Mox Pearl was hiding behind. With a telekinetic blade slicing open the crystal barrier, and a green orangutan yanking open the doors, the barricade didn't take long to bypass.

The room on the other end of the door was once the main generator, as Raven had figured out back at the Tower. Now, however, it appeared to be a throne room. Opulent sculptures of crystal depicted brave knights, incorruptible angels, bizarre yet clearly virtuous spirits, and other beings of light. The ceiling was bedecked in what looked like gold, which was actually superthick veins of the mana crystal. The central generator, once a gunmetal sphere with fat wires stuck into it, was transformed into an otherworldly throne. Coats of arms, portraits, and bizarre arcane symbols decorated the engraved surface of the sphere, and in a hollow about a third of it's height from the top, under a symbol of a blazing sun, was the Mox Pearl. While the gem itself wasn't easily visible, the blinding white glow made it clear this was what they'd come for.

_You wish to extract me from this place, is that it?_ inquired the Pearl, _Very well. Let us do battle._ With that, a powerful rumble surged through the entire station. Crystal began to flow towards the generator like water to a suction nozzle. Nearly all the crystalline matter grouped around the Pearl's throne. Suddenly, the faceted mass rose, in the form of an angel. Unlike the ones destroyed earlier by the two teens, this figure wasn't a crude humanoid figure with polygonal wings. This one was beautifully detailed, down to the shafts of the feathers and each individual strand of hair. Unlike most works of art, however, this one was thirty feet tall, heavily armored, wielding a sword as wide as Cyborg, and was preparing to destroy the two heroes before it. _No rest, _intoned the Pearl, shining like a brooch at the base of the giant's neck, _no mercy, no matter what._

ENDCHAPTERFIVEENDCHAPTERFIVEENDCHAPTERFIVEENDCHAPTERFIVEENDCHAPTERFIVE

I know, evil cliffy. You had time to read it, though, and therefore you should have time to review. Just press the button. You know you want to. Next chapter is the big fight scene, see you then!

Afterword: I'm offering a virtupie to the first person who can determine which Magic creature is the crystal giant. For anyone wondering, the soldiers from last chapter were Paladins _en_-Vec, and the lesser angels were, of course, Serra Angels.


	6. Paragon of Pain

Kudos go to Chaos Elemental, who receives an entropyberry virtupie for correctly identifying the titanic version of Akroma, Angel of Wrath. This entire chapter is one big fight scene, so I'll cut through the exposition and get right to the smashing!

DISCLAIMER: I didn't, don't, and won't own Magic: The Gathering or Teen Titans. Now stop rubbing it in.

SATELLITELABORATORYBOOKCAVERNJUNGLESATELLITELABORATORYBOOKCAVERNJUNGLE

_You wish to extract me from this place, is that it?_ inquired the Pearl, _Very well. Let us do battle._ With that, a powerful rumble surged through the entire station. Crystal began to flow towards the generator like water to a vacuum nozzle. Nearly all the crystalline matter grouped around the Pearl's throne. Suddenly, the faceted mass rose, in the form of an angel. Unlike the ones destroyed earlier by the two teens, this entity wasn't a crude humanoid figure with polygonal wings. This one was beautifully detailed, down to the shafts of the feathers and each individual strand of hair. Unlike most works of art, however, this one was thirty feet tall, heavily armored, wielding a sword as wide as Cyborg, and was preparing to destroy the two heroes before it. _No rest, _intoned the Pearl, shining like a brooch at the base of the giant's neck, _no mercy, no matter what._

Suddenly, Beast Boy's communicator went off. The shock of such a drama-ruining effect made everyone but the shapeshifter pause as he opened the device. "Hello?"

"TITANS, GO!" (A/N: If you need me to tell you who said that, leave. Now)

Beast Boy turned to Raven. "How does he always know?" She shrugged.

The great angel shook itself from its shock-induced stupor. _Enough talk. It is time for battle._ With that, the creature swung its massive sword.

"Azarath Metrion ZINTHOS!" Crying her mantra, Raven attempted to shield herself and Beast Boy, but the black energy yielded almost instantly to the glimmering blade, barely deflecting it enough to miss the two teens.

_Your dark magics have no power here, demon spawn_ spat the Pearl, preparing for another strike.

"Move, Rae!" shouted Beast Boy, as he transformed into a giant ground sloth. Unlike its lethargic descendants, this form was both quite active and incredibly strong, allowing Beast Boy to grab and stop the massive blade.

Unfortunately, the crystalline angel was five times larger than the beast before it, and easily pulled the blade up to face this annoyance. Returning to normal, Beast Boy nervously gave the peace sign. The angel didn't appear in the mood, and flicked the shapeshifter off of its sword.

Raven watched in terror as he flew into the wall, leaving an impressive impact crater. "BEAST BOY!" she exclaimed, rushing to him so she could heal the injuries.

A swipe of the winged behemoth's blade across the floor cut off her dash, and Raven shifted her focus to the jewel embedded in the figure's neck. 'If I can remove the Mox Pearl, I can free the whole station, Beast Boy included.' Aloud, she said, "You may be able to cut through my shields, but let's see you stand up to my full might." With that, she released all the anguish, the fury, the terror she was restraining, even in combat. She let everything go, and before she was consumed in the maelstrom of emotion, she thought of only one thing. 'Beast Boy...'

The angel watched as the diminutive figure before it grew into a being rivaling its own height. Black tentacles erupted forth from within Raven's cloak as the wings of her soul-self expanded to their full span. Her four eyes glowed crimson as she attempted to engulf the shining angel like Dr. Light. The tentacles attempted to ensnare the creature's limbs, but only passed through them. Though the crystal tarnished after the tendrils passed through it, the Mox Pearl quickly restored it each time. Enraged at the futility of her own attacks, the half-demon tried engulfing her opponent in her shadowy wings. A cocoon of inky black surrounded the brilliant being, and for a moment, it seemed as though Raven had succeeded.

Then, a line of brilliant light poked out of the murky curtain, then another, and another. Soon, a blinding light erupted outward from the Pearl, destroying the energy field surrounding it and blowing back the once-again human Raven into a wall. She slumped to the floor, knocked out.

_I have triumphed!_ exulted the Mox Pearl, _All who have stood before me have fallen to the might of true justice!_

"No." said a voice. "Not everyone." Beast Boy had managed to limp forward, holding his right arm to his side. "I'm still here."

_Pah! You are weak, broken. No mindless beast can stop the all-piercing light of justice!_

"You wanna bet?" With that, Beast Boy assumed the form he swore he'd never use again, thinking the same thing he thought the first time he broke that oath: 'For Raven.'

With that, he became the Man-Beast and, apparently fully healed, charged the being of light.

_Romantic fool_ the entity sneered, and swung its blade once more. In an act worthy of world-class kendo masters, the Man-Beast caught the gargantuan sword, and with a feral yell, broke off the point.

_Impossible!_ cried the Pearl, who quickly regrew the sword's tip. Even more shockingly, the crystal the Man-Beast held seemed to seep into his body, increasing the beast's stature. _How? The sword was not meant for such a purpose..._

The Man-Beast ran to the opposite wall, not to retreat, but to strike. As he careened towards the wall, he shifted himself and pushed off the solid surface, launching himself towards the enormous being before him. Ricocheting off the angel's armored side, the Beast shifted again, and launched once more. He repeated the strike over and over, like a malicious pinball. (A/N: Same tactic he used against Adonis in "The Beast Within")

The angel managed to bat its foe to the ground, but not before suffering severe cracking along much of its surface. Every move made more crystal fall to the ground. Every shard that fell on the Man-Beast didn't stop, but seemed to fall into the creature. The Mox Pearl rebuilt the crystal, but more slowly, more agonizingly. _This...this thing is exhausting me,_ thought the Pearl, _I must finish it before my spell collapses..._ Aloud, the Pearl said nothing, only prepared itself to impale the prone being before it.

Unfortunately, the being was no longer prone. The crystal rain seemed to have healed the Beast's wounds, and increased its size once again. Sidestepping the massive blade as it hit the spot where the creature just lay, the Beast grabbed the sword and, with an earsplitting roar, lifted it. After shifting the awkward mass to a more comfortable grip, the Man-Beast swung the blade into the giant's leg, shattering both. The shining spray that resulted seemed to flow into the Man-Beast as it seeped out of the Pearl's body.

The lame angel teetered, and then fell to the ground, pulverizing most of it. Only the head, neck and shoulders remained, yet the Pearl would not give in. _You think this will stop me?_ the gem sneered, _This is nothing! I will regenerate easily. Watch..._ Nothing happened. _Hang on..._ Nothing continued to happen. _Uh oh._ Nothing enjoyed an prolonged period of persistence, broken only by a petulant pearl's plea. _What happened? What's wrong?_

"You are out of power." replied a gruff voice. The Man-Beast now stood at eight feet tall, still hairy, but standing fully erect, with more humanoid proportions and a gleam of intelligence in its eyes. "I have taken it."

The Pearl gasped. _Of course. Mana alliance. The white destroys the black, but empowers the green...I helped you!_

"Exactly" growled its adversary, who was willing to go with whatever the thing was blathering about if he could smash it. "Thanks a lot. And now, I think I'll take what I came here for." With that, the Man-Beast thrust his still clawlike hand into the base of his defeated foe's neck, and extracted the source of all this frustration.

As the remnants of the angel dissipated, he could see the Mox Pearl itself clearly for the first time. The pearl itself was in the shape of a teardrop, and was attached to a golden chain by gold ornamentation that resembled the petals of a wildflower. With a last obligatory defeated-villain _Nooooooo_, the Pearl fell silent. Finally, the Man-Beast returned to Beast Boy, and collapsed on to the now crystal-free floor.

ENDCHAPTERSIXENDCHAPTERSIXENDCHAPTERSIXENDCHAPTERSIXENDCHAPTERSIXENDCHAPTERSIX

Oooh, everyone seems out of comission. Still, one down, four to go. Please review. Flames are welcome, especially when I get to the red Mox.


	7. Bedside Recap

Sorry for being late with this update, everyone. I'll try to get them in every Saturday henceforth. That should give plenty of time for reviews to come in. (hint, hint)

Now then, let's check back with our variously incapacitated heroes:

DISCLAIMER: I do not own the Teen Titans or Magic: The Gathering in any way, shape, or form. However, anyone who does and is willing to give me those rights is more than welcome to e-mail me.

READWEIRDTITANSREADWEIRDTITANSREADWEIRDTITANSREADWEIRDTITANSREADWEIRDTITANS

As the remnants of the giant angel dissipated, the Man-Beast could see the Mox Pearl itself clearly for the first time. The pearl itself was in the shape of a teardrop, and was attached to a golden chain by gold ornamentation that resembled the petals of a wildflower. With a last obligatory defeated-villain _Nooooooo_, the Pearl fell silent. Finally, the feral figure reverted to Beast Boy, and collapsed on to the now crystal-free floor.

LATERLATERLATERLATERLATERLATERLATERLATERLATERLATERLATERLATERLATERLATERLATERLATER

Beast Boy twisted, turned, moaned, and suddenly awoke with a gasp. "RAVEN!" he cried, fearing the Pearl had been able to regroup. Only then did he notice his surroundings. "This," he decided, "is not the Watchtower's generator room."

"No, it isn't." He turned and saw who had just confirmed his suspicions. Sitting at his bedside was the very person whose name he just screamed. "How are you feeling?" asked the Goth.

He groaned in response. "It feels like the T-Car just landed on my head. What happened?"

Smiling slightly, she held up a thin gold chain. Hanging from the threadlike chain was a very familiar looking gem. "I'm not sure how," she said, "but we got the Pearl."

Noticing the capital letter, Beast Boy's expression split into his trademark grin. "Sweet! Where's the next one?"

Raven frowned. "You shouldn't even stand up yet. The next Mox can wait." Her kind expression returned. "Besides, don''t you want to know how we got back to the Tower?"

He shrugged. "OK, I guess. So what I miss?"

She leaned back in her chair. "Well, first I came to..."

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Raven's eyes fluttered open. She looked around, surprised that moving her head around didn't hurt. The floor of the generator room was devoid of the crystallized mana she'd been growing used to. The various decorations the Mox Pearl had formed were gone. The room was once again nothing more than a rather roomy power plant. The only thing that was out of place was the unmoving changeling lying prone in front of the generator.

She gasped. "Beast Boy!" Raven rushed to the shapeshifter, hoping he was still alive. As she approached, his soft snoring and sleepy smile assured her that he was fine. She noticed something clutched in his hand. Opening it, she was shocked to see the Mox Pearl. She retrieved the scroll from a hidden pocket in her cape, compared it to the stone lying in the green boy's palm, and found that they matched perfectly. (A/N: If I say she's got a secret pocket in her cape, she does. You didn't know about it because it was a secret.) She was astonished Beast Boy had been able to defeat the gargantuan body the Pearl had formed by himself.

Suddenly, the verdant youth shifted in his sleep, and began to mumble. "Anything for you, Raven..."

She blushed furiously. 'He's dreaming about me? Could Cyborg have been right?"

He continued his dream mutterings. "Sure thing, Mr. Hamster. Put the tofu sculpture outside of my moped garage."

Raven slapped herself mentally. 'It's just a dream. Complete nonsense. We've got to find the others, anyway." With that, she enveloped both the sleeping Titan and herself in her soul-self, and flew to where their teammates were trapped.

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Both teens were now blushing from Beast Boy's REM-time ramblings. Raven was silently kicking Affection for letting that bit slip. Desperately grasping for a change of subject, Beast Boy spurted "So, uh, what happened to Cy and Star?"

Grateful for a reprieve from, well, anything having to do with her feelings for the boy next to her, Raven began the story anew. "Well, as far as I can tell, once the Mox Pearl went dormant, their crystal prisons began to weaken-"

"Got that right." concurred Cyborg, who rather suddenly appeared in the doorway of Beast Boy's sickroom. "The med sensors said you were up, so I thought I'd visit."

The patient blinked in confusion, then turned to Raven. "How did you get here before Cyborg?"

She blushed again. Mentally, she was running around in circles screaming 'Crap!' at the top of her lungs. Outside of her mind, Raven simply stammered. "Well, uh, you see, I was, um-"

Starfire managed to wedge herself out from under Cyborg's arm and entered the room. Joyfully, she took it upon herself to explain her friend's behavior. "Friend Raven was here before friend Cyborg because she did not leave! She has been staying by your side as a _k'norfka_ would for their unwell _bumgorf_. It was most similar to the operas of soap on the television."

This embarrassed Raven so much, the screen above Beast Boy's bed cracked, and the room's windows exploded. Fortunately, the monitor was an inch thick, so it didn't crack all the way through, and the windows exploded outward. A minor effect of the embarrassment was that the telepath's face reddened so much, her chakra seemed pink in comparison.

Sweatdropping nervously, Beast Boy tried to help the Goth get out of this situation before she hurt someone. "So, uh, we were talking about the crystal dome thingies you guys were trapped in..."

Starfire instantly switched to the new topic. "Oh, it was most wondrous! There were many beautiful fields of flowers..."

Cyborg chimed in. "And awesome cars..."

"And adorable Earth creatures..."

"And lots of meat..."

"And much mustard..."

"And Bee..."

"And Robin..."

"And Jinx..."

Both realized they had talked themselves into a corner, and nervously shut up. Raven, eager for revenge, glared mischeviously and encouraged them. "Go on, what happened next?"

Starfire merely eeped, blushed and hid behind her semi-mechanical teammate, who brought his hand behind his head and rambled, "Eh, well, funny you should ask..."

FLASHBACKCYBORGSCRYSTALPRISONFLASHBACKCYBORGSCRYSTALPRISONFLASHBACKCYBORGSCRYSTALPRISON

Vic was ecstatic. The meat kept getting better, the cars kept getting sweeter, and Jinx and Bee...well they weren't too bad either. Plus, the fact that none of his body was electric blue or steel gray was a rather large plus.

But one day, just after a rack of ribs, a new muffler, and some serious...er, after a new muffler, something went wrong. A silent _Nooooo_ tore through Vic's personal paradise, and suddenly everything was changing for the worse. The quadruple bacon cheeseburger in one hand began to droop and dissolve into some strange, white goo. The socket wrench in the other hand performed the same disturbing transmutation. Rushing up slowly softening stairs, he was horrified to see that his two ladies were slowly dissolving into the same nauseating slop, yet still acted as though they were human.

Even as her pigments began to run together like a moistened watercolor, Jinx was attempting to slink towards Vic seductively. Unfortunately, her slink soon devolved into a slither as her legs lost individual identity, and soon merged with her droopy, paling arms. Likewise, Bumblebee's gossamer wings had already dripped into a small puddle, and her attempt at lying enticingly on a couch began to fail once her matter started melting into that of her softening sofa. "Vic..." said Jinx, who was now entering "oozing" territory, "what's wrong, baaabbbbbeeeeeeeee..." He watched in horror as her mouth briefly widened into a gaping orifice nearly as tall as her dissolving form, then shlurped shut at about ankle level.

Horrifed as he was, Vic came to a sudden realization. "There's only one substance I know that's this gooey, sloppy, nasty, and white..." he began, "and that's TOFU!" Charging the wall with a cry of "Evil tofu begone!" Vic penetrated the yielding wall of ooze...

...and Cyborg burst out of his softening crystal prison. He watched in horrified disgust as the dome that had held him in blissful captivity stayed upright for a moment like a lanced boil, then collapsed in on itself with a flatulent, soylike sound. As his prison evaporated into nothingness, the dissolving hemisphere that had enclosed Starfire exploded in the signature green flash of a Starbolt, sending the glop spraying through the entire docking bay. She appeared as traumatized as he did, and nervously said to him, "I wish to never see such things again."

Thankfully, Raven and Beast Boy appeared then, though the changeling was in the telepath's arms. They all got back into the T-Ship with barely a word, and flew back to Titans Tower amid congratulations from the Justice League.

FEARTHEEVILTOFUFEARTHEEVILTOFUFEARTHEEVILTOFUFEARTHEEVILTOFU...IMEANENDFLASHBACK

Starfire nodded after Cyborg's monologue. "My prison experienced similar meltings. To be honest, it was reminiscent of friend Beast Boy's tofu."

The soy fiend in question harrumphed. "That wasn't tofu. Tofu would never do such things. Nufu, maybe, but not good ol' Earth tofu."

Raven rolled her eyes and hid her laughter behind the usual biting sarcasm. "Well, the loyalty of soy curd aside, Beast Boy is right. That wasn't tofu, but white magic losing focus. We stopped the Mox Pearl, so its crystal prisons weren't receiving any more power. That meant they had to lose shape and definition, eventually returning to intangible energy." Everyone else seemed a little glassy-eyed after this. "What?"

Beast Boy was first to break out of his monologue-induced trance. "Nothing, just a lot of information at once." He came to a sudden realization. "Dudes! Where's Robin?"

As if in response, something slithered into the room. It had black spiky hair, a mask, and a human body, so it was presumably Robin. However, the fact that this possibly-Robin was squirming on the ground, attempting to eat Beast Boy's sheets put this logic into question.

As the changeling stared in wonder at his leader, Starfire nervously cleared her throat and showed Beast Boy a newspaper. It was dated yesterday, and proclaimed **ROBIN'S NEW LOOK NO EFFECT ON CRIMEFIGHTING SKILL!** The picture showed Silkie, in full Robin uniform, happily posing for the cameras next to a group of captured villains. "It appears," the Tamaranean explained hesitantly, "that Silkie and friend Robin have...switched roles."

"Still," added Cyborg, "the little guy's got the city under control. Looks like we can head to the next Mox with no worries."

Happy to move the subject away from Robin's new lifestyle, Starfire zoomed over to Raven. "Oh yes, friend Raven, you must tell us the location of the next Mox jewel! You said you would not until Beast Boy had recovered, but now he has and-"

"All right, all right!" snapped a reddening Raven. She pulled out the Mox Pearl again, opened the scroll, and placed the jewel on its matching illustration within the manuscript. The gem flashed a brilliant white as the Azarathi script faded to a stark ivory tone. After the Pearl stopped shining, new writing began to appear to the left of the original piece. Unlike the graceful, flowing language of Azarath, this was nothing more than a seemingly random sequence of zeroes and ones that shone in a luminous sky blue. Raven stared at the new writing in total incomprehension. "I can't read this!"

Cyborg leaned over her shoulder. "I can. This is standard ASCII binary. My system can easily translate it. Hang on." After a few seconds of whirring and clicking, the mechanoman smiled. "Got it. It says..."

ENDCHAPTERSEVENENDCHAPTERSEVENENDCHAPTERSEVENENDCHAPTERSEVENENDCHAPTERSEVEN

Hee hee hee...evil cliffy. Where do YOU think the blue Mox will be located? A virtupie (blueberry, of course) is going to the person with the closest guess.


	8. The Second Reading

Congratulations go to Chaos Elemental, who correctly picked the next Mox's location (though only because he read the fic before.) Still, great job! Now then, just one more thing to do before the fun begins. Pentagram?

"Ahem. DISCLAIMER: Overactive Mind does not own Teen Titans, Magic: the Gathering, or any copyrighted materials related to the two. He does own me, because I'm one of his beloved, bizarre brainchildren."

Quite true. Now, on with the story!

SUMMERISENDINGANDIAMSADSUMMERISENDINGANDIAMSADSUMMERISENDINGANDIAMSAD

Raven pulled out the Mox Pearl, opened the scroll, and placed the jewel on its illustration within the manuscript. The gem flashed a brilliant white as the Azarathi script faded to a stark ivory tone. After the Pearl stopped shining, new writing began to appear to the left of the original piece. Unlike the graceful, flowing language of Azarath, this was nothing more than a seemingly random sequence of zeroes and ones that shone in a luminous sky blue, alongside the image of a pentagonal, faceted gemstone. Raven stared at the new writing in total incomprehension. "I can't read this!"

Cyborg leaned over her shoulder. "I can. This is standard ASCII binary. My system can easily translate it. Hang on." After a few seconds of whirring and clicking, the mechanoman smiled. "Got it. It says:

_"The place where you'll find_

_The blue Mox Sapphire_

_Is where many of the_

_Best minds have been hired._

_You won't leave the planet_

_But you're headed for stars._

_The gem is in space_

_But you can there by car."_

"So...what now?" Beast Boy asked.

"Yes, I too am most confused by this newest message." agreed Starfire. "Friend Raven, do you understand it?"

"I think so," the half-demon said hesitantly, "but I'm not certain."

"I am." The others turned to Cyborg. He'd been silent until now while the others were discussing the poem. "The Mox is going to be at S.T.A.R. Labs. The aerospace division."

"I am confused." Starfire interjected, "I do not know of these 'labs.' Why do you all insist they are mine?"

Cy appeared prepared for this question. "It's actually an acronym, Starfire. Ess, tee, ay, arr."

"Dude, what does S.T.A.R. stand for, anyway?" inquired Beast Boy.

After an long, awkward silence, Raven piped up. "You're sure it's there?"

"Positive. 'The best minds,' 'headed for stars,' 'the gem's in space,' all the clues indicate S.T.A.R. Labs."

Beast Boy rose in his bed. "Then let's go!"

Raven gentily pushed him back in bed. "We have to wait until you finish recuperating. Otherwise, you might get even worse injuries."

"Actually," Cyborg interjected, "all the med sensors say BB's in peak condition."

"Oh..." Raven put up her hood to hide the blush creeping across her face. "Never mind then."

"Oh, but friends, what shall we do with Robin?" Starfire held their confused leader, who was currently trying to eat her hair. "He still thinks he is Silky, and my _bumgorf_ believes he is Robin!"

"S.T.A.R. Labs has a top-notch psychology center, Star." Cyborg clapped his hand on her shoulder. "We'll get Robin back in crimefighting shape in no time."

"Besides," commented Beast Boy, "Silkie's kicking bad guy butt so good, we can leave without worrying about the city."

"Oh, thank you friends!" exclaimed the ebullient Tamaranean, who returned Cyborg's shoulder slap and consequentially dented his armor.

ONTHEROADONTHEROADONTHEROADONTHEROADONTHEROADONTHEROADONTHEROADONTHEROAD

And so, the Titans all climbed into the T-Car ("It says 'you can get there by car,' " Cyborg had rationalized, "I'm drivin'!") , though Robin had to be carried in a teenager-sized version of a pet carrier. Starfire insisted on staying by his size and making sure he didn't eat anything humans couldn't digest. Beast Boy was charged with supervising Starfire, since her opinion of the human digestive system was infamously inaccurate. That meant Raven sat in the passenger seat, where Cyborg could easily check on her relationship with the resident shapeshifter.

"So..." he began.

"What?"

"What'd I miss back at the Watchtower?"

"What are you talking about?" she asked, feigning innocence.

"Don't give me that, girl. You and BB were alone for, like, an hour in there. You can't tell me nothing happened."

Raven was getting annoyed. "First of all, we weren't alone. We had legions of crystalline warriors all trying to kill or capture us, and a giant angel that nearly did both. Secondly, we rescued you and Starfire as soon as I came too. Thirdly, and I can't emphasize this enough: I. Don't. Like. Beast Boy. Like. That." Her eyes glinted red. "Understand?"

For some foolhardy reason, Cyborg insisted on pressing on. "C'mon, Raven. You can't spend a two-day vigil by someone's bedside and say you don't _like_ them." He waggled his remaining eyebrow. "Besides, did you see your face when Starfire compared you two to a soap opera? You made her hair look gray."

Raven's eyebrows suddenly opened to reveal her second set of eyes. All four were glowing crimson, and in a voice that would make her father proud, she growled, "I helped you build this car. I know exactly how to take it apart. I will unless you shut. UP. **NOW.**" A black aura began to spread across the dashboard, underscoring her threat.

Sweatdropping, Cyborg finally got the message. "Oooookay then, subject dropped." The aura dissipated. Breathing a sigh of relief, Cy turned to the backseat and asked, "Hey, you two, how's our fearless leader doin'?"

Starfire fumed, "Oh, friend Cyborg, you must assist me! Friend Beast Boy refuses to allow me to give Robin any of my fried _qlurz'gruks_!"

Beast Boy retorted, "Dude, have you seen that stuff? There's no way it can be good for Robin!" Cyborg could see the changeling's point. The spoon Starfire was desperately trying to slip through the bars of Robin's cage was slowly corroding as whatever Tamaranean delicacy was perched atop it ate through the metal. Beast Boy was doing all he could to prevent this from happening, at least until the alleged "food" could finish melting the spoon.

"Starfire," Cyborg threatened, "get any of that on my baby's upholstery and there's gonna be trouble."

"I assure you, friend Cyborg, _qlurz'gruks_ do not make 'the stain.' "

"Yeah," retorted Beast Boy, who was now performing a passable five-sevenths nelson on the alien princess, "it melts everything before it can leave a mark!"

"Starfire," Raven tactfully said, "maybe you could feed Robin _after_ we get to S.T.A.R. Labs."

"Oh," sighed the orange girl, "very well." She slipped the nearly compromised utensil into her own mouth, and showed every sign of pleasure despite the smoke oozing from her nostrils.

Cyborg smiled. "Don't worry Star. We'll be there in just a few minutes."

"Lamp post." Raven called.

"Huh?"

"LAMP POST!"

"AAAAAHHH!" The cybernetic chauffeur girly screamed as he narrowly avoided hitting a light post he hadn't noticed while his attention was on the backseat.

ATTHELABATTHELABATTHELABATTHELABATTHELABATTHELABATTHELABATTHELABATTHELABATTHELAB

After a relatively uneventful remainder of driving, the Titans arrived at S.T.A.R. Labs. After Cyborg told Starfire where to drag Robin for his psychological treatment, the remaining three Titans walked to the aerospace division. Somehow, Cyborg was able to bypass every level of security simply by showing up. Eventually, the trio was lead to a large bunker containing a great deal of scrap metal. It looked as though much of the detritus was once lethal in nature. A number of rusting tank turrets, decrepit jet engines, and other moldering mechanisms littered the area.

"Dude, how'd you get us this far?" Beast Boy finally asked.

Cyborg looked down. "I really don't like to talk about it. Let's just say I know people."

In the center of the bunker there was a device that gleamed with newness. It appeared to be a muscular torso made of silver, with dull blue lines rising over the shoulders, under the armpits, and down the center of the belly, all originating from a central point. (A/N: Basically, a five-pointed asterisk design.) Atop the torso was something resembling a giant soup can with a column of slits in the front.

"What is this thing?" asked Beast Boy, awed by the technological wonder before him.

"That is the future." replied an unseen voice. Its owner stepped out of the shadows. It was a tall, well-built man with glasses and a lab coat. "Hello. My name is Dr. Stone, and I designed this. It-" He paused suddenly, noticing Cyborg as if for the first time. "Hello, son."

The teen nodded. "Hi, Dad."

ENDCHAPTEREIGHTENDCHAPTEREIGHTENDCHAPTEREIGHTENDCHAPTEREIGHTENDCHAPTEREIGHT

Bum bum bum! Yeah, Cyborg's dad probably isn't alive, but I wanted to put him in. So there. The only way I can find out if this chapter was as bad as part of me thinks is if you press the button. Flames are always welcome, because they're pretty. Pretty fire…


	9. Interview with a Sapphire

Hello all! As you may have noticed, my updates have begun a predictable pattern. I intend to update on Wednesdays and Saturdays henceforth, and since I've written through chapter 14, I'll be able to do it regularly.

And now, for today's segment, an awkward moment for the family Stone:

DISCLAIMER: I don't own Teen Titans or Magic: the Gathering. All intellectual properties referenced herein are used without permission of the owners, but in a way that does not plagiarize the sources. To the owner of the green Mazda, your lights are on. Owner of a green Mazda, your lights are on.

SHINYPRETTYPRETTYSHINYSHINYPRETTYPRETTYSHINYSHINYPRETTYPRETTYSHINY

In the center of the bunker there was a device that gleamed with newness. It appeared to be a muscular torso made of silver, with dull blue lines rising over the shoulders, across the midsection, and down the center of the chest, all converging a central point. (A/N: Basically, a five-pointed asterisk design.) Atop the torso was something resembling a giant soup can with a column of slits in the front.

"What is this thing?" asked Beast Boy, awed by the technological wonder before him. It was shiny.

"That is the future." replied an unseen voice. Its owner stepped out of the shadows. It was a tall, well-built man with glasses and a lab coat. "Hello. My name is Dr. Stone, and I designed this. It-" He paused suddenly, noticing Cyborg as if for the first time. "Hello, son."

The teen nodded. "Hi, Dad."

Raven and Beast Boy both pulled a double take. "DAD?" Raven's shock made the ceiling creak ominously, but thankfully, it held.

Dr. Stone nodded. "Yes, I am Cyborg's father." The two did share a resemblance, mechanical attachments aside. "My wife...his mother and I designed his cybernetic replacements after the accident."

Beast Boy opened his mouth, but Raven silenced him with a hand on his shoulder. "Don't," she whispered, "the last thing these two need is reopening old wounds." The changeling fell silent, understanding. Both he and the telepath had shadowy pasts of their own, and knew to respect the privacy of their friend's.

An awkward silence lay over the four, and was only breached by Cyborg saying "So, what have you been working on since 'Project: Save Your Kid'?"

The elder Stone winced. "Let's not go down that path again, son." Cyborg relented, and Dr. Stone continued. "We've been researching how to best harness the most efficient energy source we've ever discovered. It just seems to generate power out of nowhere, like-"

"Magic?" Raven interrupted. She had a hunch about this "energy source".

"Exactly," the scientist concurred, unaware of her suspicions. "But, of course, there's no such thing."

"Of course," deadpanned the third most powerful source of magic in the bunker. (A/N: Raven)

"Anyway," Dr. Stone continued, still oblivious to the half-demoness' dry wit, "its power seems most conducive in metal, especially silver, steel and alloys. We've designed this special focusing chamber for the source to best exploit its effects." He gestured towards the metallic device that loomed above them. It was about eight feet tall, and the parts that didn't have a dull blue glow did seem rather silvery upon closer inspection.

Cyborg approached it, and began to examine the contraption. He gave out a low whistle. "Titanium-silver alloy, quad output generators, ferrocopper insulated storage compartment, overload bleeder vents, you really went all out with this one, Dad."

His father smirked. "Glad you approve, Vic."

Beast Boy broke out off his technobabble-induced daze. " 'Vic?' Your name's Vic? You never told us your name was Vic."

"And you never told him your name was Garfield." Raven smirked.

The changeling was shocked. "Dude! How'd you know that?" (A/N: Remember, this takes place before "Homecoming.")

"You can't waltz into my mind as many times as you have without leaving something behind," she replied.

"How many times do I have to tell you? The mirror dragged me in! You can't blame me if your crazy portal thingy has a mind of it's own!"

"But I can blame you for sneaking into my room uninvited!"

"Then maybe you should lock your door!"

"It was locked! You squeezed under it like the roach you are!"

"If I'm a roach, what does that make you, a hermit crab?"

"You little grass stain!"

"You brooding creep!"

Father and son watched the exchange with great amusement. "Ain't they cute?" Cyborg asked his father.

He grinned in reply. "They remind me of your mother and me before we started dating. I think I hear wedding bells in their future." Both bowed their heads in Mrs. Stone's memory, but looked back up in time to see changeling and telepath glaring as one at them.

They shouted in unison, "FOR THE LAST TIME, WE'RE JUST FRIENDS!"

The Stones recoiled in fear from the two heroes' united anger. Dr. Stone nervously cleared his throat. "Well, moving on, what say we fire this baby up?"

Raven held up a hand. "Hold on a moment. I think I know what this power source is." Ignoring the scientists' protests, she hovered to the cavity where a lump of something could just be made out in the largely opaque glass. Closing her eyes, Raven attempted to penetrate the chamber telepathically. _I know you're in there,_ she prodded, _what are you planning?_

_Well, well. A telepath. About time those walking pocket protectors found a working way to analyze me._ The voice resounded with overtones of oceans, of omniscience, of unquestionable superiority.

Raven would've narrowed her eyes if they weren't already closed. _What are you planning, Mox Sapphire?_

_Oh, not much. I just want to add afterburners to the human race._ The encased jewel gushed innocence.

As an expert secret-keeper herself, Raven wasn't fooled. _By depleting your own power? Please. You're plotting something._

_And if I am? These ever-so-helpful researchers would never let you get even a millimeter closer to me._ The gem gave the telepathic equivalent of a smirk, and fell silent.

Raven returned to the ground. "Well?" Beast Boy asked.

She nodded. "It's what we're looking for." She turned to Dr. Stone, and told it straight, "Listen, we need that power source. Now."

He frowned. "Alright, but only if you let us do one test run. Once we understand how to reproduce the energy in this thing, we'll relinquish the original."

All three Titans nodded, but Raven did so hesitantly. _I just hope I don't end up regretting this..._

Dr. Stone rushed to some sort of console, pressed a few buttons, and called on a PA system: "All researchers for Project: Thaum, prepare for generator test run. This is not a drill." The entire bunker began to hum with restrained power. The hum soon turned into a low vibration, and the obligatory coffee mug (This one emblazoned with "World's Best Clichéd Plot Device") used to demonstrate such phenomena began to shake and slosh its contents.

The chamber storing the Mox Sapphire began to glow, as did the dull blue channels, which were now glowing an almost blinding cerulean. Four devices resembling satellite dishes extended from the device, each originating at the shoulder and hip, if one thought of the chamber as the trunk of a giant body. As they began to crackle with azure energy, there was, on the edge of hearing, a low chuckle.

ATTHEPSYCHIATRICWARDATTHEPSYCHIATRICWARDATTHEPSYCHIATRICWARDATTHEPSYCHIATRICWARD

"Oh, doctor, please tell me you can make Robin Robin again!" Starfire pleaded.

"My dear, I'll do my best," he said, "but this is the worst case of identity crisis I've ever seen. Furthermore-"

"Furthermore?" Star gasped, "Is there something else wrong with Robin besides the crisis of identity?"

"No, it isn't him."

"Then what is it? What?" Starfire then gave a puppy dog face that even Beast Boy's kitten form couldn't outcute.

The psychiatrist, however, was unaffected by this adorable display. "It would greatly help Robin if you would LET GO OF MY LEGS AND ALLOW ME TO SEE HIM!" He gasped for breath, exasperated.

"Oh," Starfire blushed. She realized she had put a death grip on the analyst's lower legs in her desperation. "My apologies." She released him, and both moved to Robin's ward. Hopefully, something would cure the deranged Boy Wonder.

ENDCHAPTERNINEENDCHAPTERNINEENDCHAPTERNINEENDCHAPTERNINEENDCHAPTERNINE

Well, that's it for now. In the meantime, I leave you with this zombie protest chant:

"What do we want?"

"Brains!"

"When do we want 'em?"

"BRAINS!"

See ya'll soon!


	10. Some Assembly Required

Hail, citizens of Fanfictionnia! Caesar has declared today a holiday for Zeus, and has demanded I provide thee with another helping of Titanic exploits. Since I enjoy not being dead, I promptly complied. Now then, one quick disclaiming, and I can push this story into double-digit chapters…again!

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Teen Titans, Magic: the Gathering, or any other intellectual property mentioned in this fictional piece. Lawyers, go back to chasing your ambulances.

JEWELSLAUGHINGEVILLYISUSUALLYABADTHINGJEWELSLAUGHINGEVILLYISUSUALLYABADTHING

The chamber storing the Mox Sapphire began to glow, especially the dull blue channels, which were now shone an almost blinding cerulean. Four devices resembling satellite dishes extended from the device, each originating at the shoulder and hip, if one thought of the chamber as the trunk of a giant body. As they crackled with azure energy, there was, on the edge of hearing, a low chuckle.

The only person in the room who picked up that chuckle was Beast Boy, his ears twitching as they detected the subsonic frequency. "Uh, guys," he said worriedly, "I don't think this is-" But before he could finish, a cerulean beam of lightning shot out from one of the chamber's "shoulder"-level dishes and hit the changeling. With a muffled sound somewhere between a gasp and a squawk, Beast Boy transformed into a blue chicken.

Raven and Cyborg stared at the azure avian in wonder. "Sorry!" Dr. Stone called out from his console, "Energy spike, couldn't send it through the bleeder vents quite yet."

Beast Boy didn't seem very interested in the technical aspects of his situation. He piteously clucked, desperately trying to change back. "Quit joking around, BB, change back," Cyborg commanded.

"BUKKA! Buk bukka buk buk buk buk. Buk buk bukka buKKA!" Sadly, Beast Boy could only speak in Chicken, while his fellow Titans could only listen in Confusion. Slowly, his feathers shifted from their new blue back to the original green, and he managed to reassume his human form.

"You wanna tell us what that was about?" Cyborg asked, arms crossed.

"DUDE! I was trying to change back. It just wasn't working!" Beast Boy cried. He turned to glare at the hulking shape that had zapped him. "I don't think that thing likes me."

"Impossible," Dr. Stone scoffed. "It's just a gemstone. It can't have emotions!" A screen on the console beeped a cheery little tune. "Great! Generator at 100 efficiency. Deactivating preliminary limiters." With a series of seemingly random button combinations, the Sapphire-holding chamber seemed to grow brighter, though its light was already at eye-watering levels.

Cyborg suddenly remembered something. "Hey, Dad," he called, "what exactly did you design that thing to do, anyway?"

As Dr. Stone looked at his creation with pride, he explained its purpose. "This device uses the gem's energy to form specialized electromagnetic fields. With those, it can become a sort of super recycling plant. It can crush and compact metal, reshape it, we've even found it can change the color of things to a bright blue!"

"We noticed that." Beast Boy bitterly muttered.

Cyborg ignored his peeved teammate. "Wow, just imagine the possibilities."

_Indeed_, rumbled a deep voice. It was the same voice Raven heard while in telepathic congress with Sapphire, only amplified many times over. It boomed out of the containment unit, much to the amazement of almost everyone there.

"What the..." began Dr. Stone, whose attention was quickly pulled to one of his consoles. It was blaring an alarm and flashing in a violent shade of red. "This doesn't make sense! The capacitors have completely shut down. The chamber's receiving five gigawatts every second! It should have exploded from that much energy exposure!" Frantically, the researcher tried everything he could to restore order and logic to the situation. "It's no good!" he cried finally, "I've been locked out!"

_Of course,_ the voice rumbled, _I can't have you gentlemen interfering, now can I?_ With that, all four of the construct's emitter dishes blazed with blue energy, launching it at the military refuse scattered about the hanger. Dr. Stone and company had done well. The energy beams effortlessly bent, compressed, reshaped, and otherwise redesigned the metal to form a most formidable form. Arms and legs were quickly formed from the smorgasbord of parts, with joints composed of naked cerulean energy. The detail was astonishing. Individual fingers were almost lovingly crafted by the magnetic power; accents on armor were carefully adjusted for maximum aesthetic impact to accompany the physical. Amazingly, the entire forging process took place in a matter of seconds. The end result was a vaguely humanoid shape, masterfully crafted, but clearly designed for combat. _Now then,_ spoke the Mox Sapphire, snug in its new body, _if you would all be so kind as to let me go forth and consume all metal to construct the ultimate body for myself?_

The three Titans assumed a triangular formation, with Cyborg closest to the newly made mech. "I don't think so," said the technoteen.

ATTHEPSYCHIATRISTSOFFICEAFEWMINUTESEARLIERATTHEPSYCHIATRISTSOFFICEAFEWMINUTESEARLIER

Meanwhile, the psychiatrist had finally managed to get both Robin and himself into his office at the same time. Unfortunately, Starfire wouldn't let him do anything while she wasn't present, having heard many a nasty tale of Earth "head-shrinkers." At the moment, he was administering a Rorschach, or ink blot test, one of the few that had made it past the Tamaranean's highly suspicious screening process.

"What do you see now?" he asked Robin, holding up another ink-splattered card.

"SLAAAAADE!" the Boy Wonder shouted in reply. He was drooling slightly, and his eyes were probably racing from side to side. Of course, the mask made it kind of hard to tell.

The psychiatrist nodded. "OK, and this one?"

"SLAAAAADE!"

The bespectacled head examiner sweatdropped. Obvious obsession, coupled with the stress of having to ensure the safety of an entire city _and_ puberty. No wonder this kid was a mess. He decided to give it one more try. "What about this one?" He had unknowingly picked a card that, in complete defiance of the odds, had a perfect silhouette of Slade on it.

Robin took a deep breath, ready to blast the name of his archnemesis at the top of his lungs. Suddenly, a mysterious signal went off in his mind. There was a battle about to begin. Years of well-honed superhero team leader instincts kicked in. "TITANS, GO!"

The psychiatrist breathed a sigh of relief. "Well, we're making progress."

BACKATTHEBATTLESITEBACKATTHEBATTLESITEBACKATTHEBATTLESITEBACKATTHEBATTLESITE

The Titans tried to engage the giant machine. Unfortunately, the Sapphire appeared to have figured out a counterstrategy for each Titan. Raven's telekinetic powers were negated with blinding flashes of light. Cyborg's assaults were short circuited via electromagnetic pulses. As for Beast Boy, it just kept turning him into a chicken. Several minutes into the battle, all three teens were exhausted. As Beast Boy once again left a feathery, friable form, he moaned, "Dude, how are we supposed to beat this thing if it can stop everything we do?"

Cyborg frowned and shrugged. "I really don't know." He turned to his father. "Dad, any ideas?" There was an uncomfortable pause. "Dad?" Dr. Stone was paralyzed at his console, standing ramrod straight and slightly glowing with a periwinkle aura. Furious, the half-hardware hero faced his adversary. "What," he growled, "have you done to my father?"

"He's not the only one," Raven noted. It was true. Every researcher on Project: Thaum was stopped in his or her tracks, standing at attention.

_Please,_ scoffed the Sapphire, _do you really think I'd keep those who constructed this shell aware and able to exploit whatever failsafes they put into it? That would be downright silly._

"Oh, and constantly turning me into a chicken isn't?" Beast Boy snapped. A brief crackle of azure lightning later, an indignant indigo rooster was angrily clucking where the changeling stood.

_Ahhh, _The Sapphire gave a sigh of contentment, _that never gets old._

"Enough of this," Raven growled, "we're taking you down." With that, the three charged the Sapphire in one final, desperate gambit. It was do-or-die time, and something would be doing the latter.

ENDCHAPTERTENENDCHAPTERTENENDCHAPTERTENENDCHAPTERTENENDCHAPTERTENENDCHAPTERTEN

For those of you scratching your heads about what creature the Sapphire formed, it's the Arcbound Overseer from Darksteel. Also, for those of you who are Magically inclined, be sure to check out my personality test in the M:tG fanfic section. (It's under Video Games.) Now click the pretty button, and you will receive fudge. Lots and lots of fudge.


	11. Return to Abnormal

Salutations to all. Allow me to apologize for the late update. My senior prom was Friday, and the post-prom went on until 6 AM. Saturday was lost to sleep and other basic vital functions, so this chapter's coming up today. This, however, does not explain the incredible dearth of reviews. Let me guess: No one's going to review until I get to new material. Well, I'm pretty sure this is the last chapter I posted last time, so come Wednesday I'm expecting quite a bit of feedback. Well, enough nagging, there's a fight goin' on!

DISCLAIMER: Since the world didn't end on Satan Day (6/6/06), I guess I don't own the Teen Titans or Magic: the Gathering

DOMINEERENCHANTARTIFACTCREATUREDOMINEERENCHANTARTIFACTCREATURE

Dr. Stone was paralyzed at his console, standing ramrod straight and slightly glowing with a periwinkle aura. Furious, the half-hardware hero faced his adversary. "What," he growled, "have you done to my father?"

"He's not the only one," Raven noted. It was true. Every researcher on Project Thaum was stopped in his or her tracks, standing at attention.

_Please,_ scoffed the Sapphire, _do you really think I'd keep those who constructed this shell aware and able to exploit whatever failsafes they put into it? That would be downright silly._

"Oh, and constantly turning me into a chicken isn't?" Beast Boy snapped. A brief crackle of azure lightning later, an indignant indigo rooster was angrily clucking where the changeling stood.

_Ahhh, _The Sapphire gave a sigh of contentment, _that never gets old._

"Enough of this," Raven cried, "we're taking you down." With that, the three charged the Sapphire in one final, desperate gambit. It was do-or-die time, and something would be doing the latter.

_Impudent fools_. the Sapphire sneered. Its finely crafted fists surged forward, each connecting with Beast Boy or Raven, and sending its respective Titan crashing into the far wall. Cyborg, however, dodged both, and sent his own metallic fist into the gargantuan gizmo's chest armor. Recoiling at this attack, the metallic monster seemed to admire the sizable dent in its plating. _Impressive,_ it mused, _you managed to bypass my fists, resist my ambient magnetic field, and strike me. You're hired!_

All Cyborg could mange was a "Huh?" before blue tendrils of energy surged through him. Unlike those that had repeatedly transformed Beast Boy, these seemed to enhance the teched out teen, even making him glow with an azure aura like that surrounding each engineer. When Cyborg next opened his eyes, they both glowed the same blue tint as his circuitry. He kneeled before the Mox Sapphire, and in a voice that crackled with magical energy, said "I am at your command, master."

_Excellent._ If the Sapphire's housing were capable of smirking, it would have. _Destroy your former allies._

"Yes, master."

Just after this discourse, Beast Boy managed to regain awareness. "Anyone get the number of that jet?" he moaned. A metal hand presented itself before him, and the changeling flinched away before noticing that the extremity belonged to Cyborg. "Oh," he said, "hey, Cy."

"Need a hand?" The mechanoman oozed innocence.

"Sure!" The trusting shapeshifter grabbed Cyborg's hand, only to be flung toward the opposite wall. Only a quick change to a rhino prevented Beast Boy from crashing into it again. Shifting back, he cried "Dude, what's your problem?"

_No problem,_ the Sapphire explained, _he's just had a change of heart._

"Exactly" Cyborg agreed. Suddenly, his human eye lost its bluish glow, and Cyborg croaked out "BB...RUN!" He soon snapped back to fully domineered form, and grinning evilly, fired both sonic cannons at his former teammate.

"Whoa!" Beast Boy barely dodged the blasts, transforming to a hummingbird to flit between the high-frequency beams.

It was then that Raven's eyes fluttered open. "Huh?" She saw Cyborg firing willy-nilly at a green hummingbird that could only be Beast Boy. She gasped. "No!"

The Mox Sapphire fired a familiar sky-tinted discharge at the small creature, transforming it once more into a blue chicken. _Now, my pawn!_ the gem crowed, _Finish him!_

**"I don't think so."** boomed a four-eyed Raven. She growled threateningly, and raised her arms. **"Any who would threaten Garfield answer to ME."**

The now-turquoise chicken's jaw dropped. Cyborg sneered. The Sapphire merely muttered _Interesting._ The stage was set for a climactic battle the likes of which would never be seen again for a few chapters. The tension neared the breaking point...

...but the door to the hanger broke first. Through it charged a still clearly insane Robin, trailing crazy person drool. Starfire flew after him, followed closely by the weary psychiatrist. "Robin, please stop!" cried the alien princess.

Robin responded only with blabber. "Geheeqerflabingeearginblageblergen!" It his delirium, he spotted the hulking, armored shape of Cyborg, and what few functioning neurons he had left fired. "SLAAAAAADE!" With that, the Boy Wonder leapt on top of Cyborg, and began to gnaw on the larger teen's shoulder. Robin's oozing drool connected with the electrothaumic field covering Cyborg, and both received a huge electrical shock as a result.

"Robin!" Starfire cried in dismay.

Cyborg fell to the ground, power cells drained. Robin, however, stirred after hearing the Tamaranean's voice. "Uhhh...Starfire?" he moaned, singed but otherwise fine.

"Oh, glorious! Robin is Robin again!" With that, Starfire locked her idol in an infamous vicelike embrace. Robin was clearly not entirely recovered, because he didn't seem to mind that his ribs were slowly being ground to powder.

"You see?" cried the psychiatrist, "I told you shock therapy would have worked!" While maintaining her hug, the alien glared at him, eyes ablaze. "Never mind..."

BACKINJUMPCITYBACKINJUMPCITYBACKINJUMPCITYBACKINJUMPCITY

Silky, still in full Robin regalia, posed for the press in front of the latest batch of bank robbers he had neutralized. While public opinion about Robin's new method of capturing villains (swallowing them whole, then regurgitating them in an inescapable mesh of zorka berry-scented goo) was mixed, people soon warmed up to the Worm Wonder's new persona. Adorable and affectionate even to the criminals he captured, this new personality was a welcome change from the obsessive, borderline creepy figure that some had privately thought was almost as bad as the villains he stopped.

However, even as flashes were firing in press cameras, a cosmic signal of equilibrium flashed through Silkie/Robin's mind. Ignoring the insistent interviewers, Silkie slimed out of the Robin uniform the team had made for him during the original Robin's training, ate it, and slowly creeped back to Titans Tower.

The news media, the approaching mayor, Key to the City in hand, and even the captured criminals all looked at one another, realized they had been interviewing/adoring/stopped by the Titan's larval mascot, all quietly moved away from awkwardness ground zero, an unspoken agreement among them to never mention this moment.

BACKTOTHEACTIONBACTOTHEACTIONBACKTOTHEACTIONBACKTOTHEACTION

The Mox Sapphire, annoyed by how the Boy Wonder's regained insanity had upstaged its imminent triumph over the Titans, cleared its nonexistent throat and called to all present. _Excuse me? Hate to interject, but we have something of a dramatic showdown to get to here._

"Oh really?" Robin had managed to extract himself from Starfire's hold and entered a combat pose. "Then let's get to it. Titans..."

Robin's battle cry was cut short by a black energy barrier cutting Starfire and him off from the non-teen titan. As Raven turned to her leader, the crimson glow of her eyes shone through even the telekinetic barrier. **"I've got this one."**

A nervous exaggerated sweatdrop manifested by Robin's head. "OK then. All yours, Raven."

With that, the empath expanded, eldritch tentacles emerging from the depths of her cloak. As she had done with the giant angel formed by the Mox Pearl, she attempted to envelop this foe in her soulself. Unlike that previous attempt, this one worked well. Despite many efforts to the contrary, the Sapphire's body was inexorably dragged into the void. Occasional flashes of blue flared against the inky force, but soon failed. Raven withdrew, leaving a dismantled, corroded, and decrepit remnant of the once-formidable device. In full human form, she triumphantly held up a blue, pentagonal gem on a thin, golden chain and murmured, "Got it." She then fainted into Beast Boy's arms, his mouth still agape from her previous proclamation

ENDCHAPTERELEVENENDCHAPTERELEVENENDCHAPTERELEVENENDCHAPTERELEVENENDCHAPTERELEVEN

Yay! Two Moxen down! I apologize for the seemingly "too easy" way of dealing with the Sapphire, and the repeated fainting. Still, I tried to add some new content. Now please review, I can't make it better unless I know what to improve!


	12. Confessions Over Cocoa

Hello, oh loyal readers! I'm sorry for the delay, my Document Manager was malfunctioning yesterday. Oh well. My thanks go to realfanficts, who gave a most enheartening review, and Icee, who's chain of reviews nicely pumped my numbers ;) Now then, I'm almost positive this the first new chapter since I started reposting Mox Quest. To celebrate, I've made it extra long. Enjoy!

DISCLAIMER: I continue to not own Teen Titans or Magic: the Gathering. I do own an Experiment Kraj card, though. Yay, Legendary Ooze!

THANKYOUFORYOURPATIENCEWEAPOLOGIZEFORTHEDELAYTHANKYOUFORYOURPATIENCEWEAPOLOGIZEFORTHEDELAY

With an ear-wrenching cry, Raven expanded, eldritch tentacles emerging from the depths of her cloak. As she had done with the giant angel formed by the Mox Pearl, she attempted to envelop the Sapphire's construct in her soulself. Unlike that previous attempt, this one worked well. Despite many efforts to the contrary, the Sapphire's body was inexorably dragged into the void. Occasional flashes of blue flared against the inky force, but soon failed. Raven withdrew, leaving a dismantled, corroded, and decrepit remnant of the once-formidable device. Triumphantly holding up a blue, pentagonal gem on a thin, golden chain, she murmured, "Got it," then fainted.

Beast Boy, freed from roosterhood upon the Sapphire's dormancy, caught the dark girl in his arms. "Seems like we've been doing this a lot lately," he whispered fondly to her exhausted form. Unfortunately, he decided to look up for a moment, and blushed furiously from what he saw at that perspective.

Robin was smirking knowingly, his ability to accurately read into every secret (aside from Starfire's blatant adoration) restored along with his sanity. Starfire herself was enraptured by the adorable display of love and chivalry. Cyborg was, thankfully, still out cold, but the scientist, Dr. Stone included, were coming out of their gem-induced trance, and the shifter had a hunch that the father was as skilled in accusations of love as the son.

Quickly, but still ensuring her comfort, Beast Boy put down Raven and whistled innocently, twiddling his thumbs. Unfortunately, it was far too late to feign innocence. Maintaining his smirk, Robin said "Just wait 'til Cy hears about this. He'll never let you two hear the end of it."

"Oh, Robin," moaned Starfire, taking the Boy Wonder's arm, "Do not ruin this most adorable moment between our two _slger'klin'rvneq_ friends. It would be most unfair to deny them the times of adoration we so often-"

Robin cut off the rest of her plea with a gloved hand to her mouth. "I think Beast Boy gets the point, Star." Looking around, he finally realized they were in a rather unusual location. "Why don't we get home and everyone can explain to me what I've missed…"

ONTHEROADAGAINONTHEROADAGAINONTHEROADAGAINONTHEROADAGAIN

After Dr. Stone recharged his son's energy cells, the Titans returned to Jump City.

"Alright team," Robin stated, easily returning to his leader archetype, "I'll be sitting iin the passenger seat so Cyborg can inform me of everything I missed."

"And I," said Starfire, with exaggerated innocence, "will fly alongside the T-Car, as I desire some fresh air, and to sight seas along the way." She frowned in confusion. "Though I am certain I would be able to see such large bodies of water from the T-Car itself…"

"Er, it's sightsee, Star," the leader corrected. He turned to Beast Boy, holding the still prostrate Raven. "Anyway, Beast Boy, you and Raven will be in the backseat. You look after her and make sure her condition remains stable." All of the teens nodded (well, the conscious ones,) and either got in the T-Car or entered its immediate airspace.

As the land vehicle ran along the freeway, Cyborg whispered to Robin, "Rob, great job on getting those two together for the ride home. How'd you get Star to go along with it?"

The Boy Wonder smiled. "It was actually her idea. She does have a point though. Those two just seem right together somehow." He turned to look at them. Neither of the backseat occupants noticed. Raven, while no longer truly knocked out, was still fast asleep, and faintly smiling. Beast Boy, meanwhile, was happily letting her use his lap as her pillow and fondly watching her doze. That the changeling's actions weren't in the least bit creepy underscored Robin's point.

BACKATTHETOWERBACKATTHETOWERBACKATTHETOWERBACKATTHETOWER

Raven yawned and stretched as she awoke. Trudging to a nearby bookcase for some early morning reading material, it took her several minutes to register that she had just been in a climactic showdown against a metallic monster. Frantically, she dug through her bedding, soon locating the Mox Sapphire that had fallen out of her grasp, assuring herself that it hadn't been a dream.

"Who...?" she began, but she then discovered who had taken her back to her bed. A certain green boy was fast asleep on a spindly chair pulled up by her bed. Smiling softly, the empath mentally lifted the exhausted shifter and phased him through a few walls to his own bed. Using her mind's eye, she lifted his sheets, covered him, and resisted the urge to rinse out her brain after manipulating such putrid bedclothes. "Thank you, Garfield" she whispered, and returned to a happy slumber.

LATERTHATNIGHTLATERTHATNIGHTLATERTHATNIGHTLATERTHATNIGHT

Beast Boy, appropriately, awoke later that night to attend to a call of nature. Exiting the bathroom, he noticed a light on in ops. Curious, he entered the spacious common room and looked about. In the kitchen portion of the area, he discovered Raven, but she appeared unlike any version of Raven he'd ever seen.

She was dressed in an overlarge white and red striped long-sleeved shirt; almost totally obscuring the blue boxer shorts underneath. A hand was largely hidden in its too long sleeve, the other grasped a mug of something steaming. At first, Beast Boy suspected it was her usual herbal tea, but the smell and marshmallows peeking above the rim betrayed it as hot chocolate. The ensemble was complete with purple fuzzy slippers adorned with little bat wings at the ankles.

The dark girl seemed just as surprised to see him, though the changeling's attire was his usual Doom Patrol spandex. "What are you doing up?" she asked, shocked at his sudden appearance.

"I was about to ask you the same thing!" he exclaimed, "Besides, what's with the…the…" Where was he to begin? This wasn't Raven, this was, well, cute!

She shrugged. "Hey, even the infernal spawn of evil like a midnight snack." Raven then nonchalantly sipped her cocoa.

"But since when do you drink hot chocolate?"

Raven looked down, and her cheeks reddened a little. "It's kind of a guilty pleasure. Chocolate didn't exist on Azarath. It was one of the first great discoveries I made here. I've become a closet chocoholic ever since. I guess all the combat keeps me in shape."

"And the outfit?"

She raised an eyebrow. "Personally, I thought that would be obvious. I don't know why I ever tried to sleep in Spandex. This is way more comfortable."

Beast Boy's mind had practically slipped a gasket at this point, attempting to cope with Raven not only not in cape, cowl, and Spandex, but as a positively adorable Sleepytime Raven. In an attempt to keep a little sanity and dignity before his conversation devolved into babble, he reached for a change of subject. "So, uh, have you looked at the next Mox's location?"

She shook her head, unaware of his predicament. "I only woke up an hour or two ago, and dozed soon after that." She looked down in concern. "Besides, I'm…worried."

Beast Boy's expression instantly shifted to one of shocked concern. Raven worried about something usually meant that the apocalypse was nigh. "What's wrong?"

She sat on the big red couch, and sipped her cocoa again. "Every time we've faced a Mox, I've lost control of my emotions. I've exploded into a fit of rage, my demon side took control." The mug began to shake in her hands. "Every time that happens, my hold on my powers slips a little more."

He sat beside her, his face the portrait of concern. "But your meditation helps fight that, right?"

Raven shook her head. "Not for this. This isn't everyday emotion, this is Rage slipping free of her bonds, gaining a little more ground in my mind."

"But you took out Trigon." Beast Boy grasped on to the first positive he could think of. "She can't be nearly as dangerous now."

"No, but we've been collecting artifacts of incredible magical power, and the next one governs-" She mumbled the rest.

"What?" he asked. Her only response was to turn away from him. "Raven," Beast Boy pleaded, "please don't hide this from me. What's this next Mox do?"

"Dark magic," she finally uttered. "The power…Malchior was teaching me." The changeling's expression moved to one of rage when the breaker of Raven's heart was named. She continued, "With that kind of power, if I lose control, it could mean the end of the world."

"Again?" She looked at her green companion in shock. He gave his famous fanged smile and continued. "Please, we've already had one apocalypse. How bad can another one be?"

Raven stared at him as though sausages had just sprouted from his fingernails. She had just pronounced global ruin, and he brushes it off like another chore around the Tower? "How?" she asked. "How can you be so calm about this, so easy-going? I could destroy all of humanity! I could…" She could barely finish, "could…kill _you_."

Beast Boy looked back at her compassionately. "Because you're you, Raven. You would never do those things, no part of you would. You act like you're some kind of monster, barely keeping yourself from tearing loose and destroying everything around you. But you're more than that. You're a person, Raven. You're a wonderful person, and I-" He caught himself. Tears were starting to form in the dark girl's eyes. Could he have said the wrong thing? He backpedaled. "I thought you needed to hear that."

Raven said nothing for a moment, putting her cocoa on the table and not looking at the shapeshifter. Just when he started bracing himself for being on the wrong end of her powers, she embraced him, causing a bit of blushing on both ends. Physics, usually ignored by these two, intervened and forced them to tip over so she was on top of him. Barely breathing, their lips approached one another, and…

The table rocketed ceilingward, tipping the cup of cocoa over and sending hot gooey marshmallow into Beast Boy's ribs. Screaming, he rose, throwing Raven off him as he tried to remove the searing sweet by randomly changing shape. Eventually, he managed to lick the cooling goo off his side by turning into a tabby cat. Turning back, he turned back to Raven and chuckled nervously.

She was also embraced by awkwardness, but was acting far cooler under the circumstances. "That never happened. Agreed?" she proposed, the barest hint of disappointment in her voice.

He was to busy leaping on the opportunity for a joke to notice. "What never happened?"

She risked a smirk at the quip, hoping he wouldn't notice. "Still, Beast Boy, thank you for what you said. I really needed it."

Smiling kindly, he replied. "Any time, Rae. Any time. Ready to check for the next Mox?"

She nodded pulled the scroll out of her shirt pocket. "I've have the scroll right here. Shall we?

"Sure!" With that, both returned to the U-shaped couch, and Raven applied the Mox Sapphire to its illustration. After a nearly blinding azure flash, the binary code faded to a nonluminescent "Blue Screen of Death" hue, and in the center of the scroll, new symbols formed. These characters glowed with a haunting antilight, a blackness on the other side of shadow. The symbols themselves were formed with violent, harsh strokes, as though each glyph was designed to deliver pain to the scroll as much as to convey information. "Dude…" Beast Boy whispered, shocked by the pure malice in the figures. "What is this?"

"This is the written language of demons," Raven explained. "It's…usually written on the hides of the messengers. I'm no master, but I think I can make this out. Let me see…" After several minutes of hushed silence, she suddenly gasped, stood, and started out of the room.

"Raven!" Beast Boy cried, "Where are you going?"

"Please, Beast Boy," she answered, "don't follow me. This won't be pretty." As she walked towards her destination, she muttered, "I'll make sure of it."

ENDCHAPTERTWELVEENDCHAPTERTWELVEENDCHAPTERTWELVEENDCHAPTERTWELVEENDCHAPTERTWELVE

So, what did you think? I tried to pack as much fluff into a transitory chapter as possible, and no fluffest is complete without a ruined kiss scene. Don't worry, I'll make sure these two get one soon. Now tell me what you thought, so I can attune the fic more to your liking! You had the time to read, so please review!


	13. The Third Reading, or, What You Say?

And so we enter the unlucky chapter. Considering the events herein, that's a rather appropriate description. A warning: I may deviate from canon a little, but I won't do anything too drastic. You'll see as we begin.

DISCLAIMER: I don't own Teen Titans, Magic: the Gathering, Microsoft Windows, or Zero Wing (you'll see.) I do own a Macintosh, and a Bill Gates voodoo doll, though I lack a personal item of his.

OLDESTJOKEONTHENETOLDESTJOKEONTHENETOLDESTJOKEONTHENET

Raven applied the Mox Sapphire to its illustration. After a nearly blinding azure flash, the binary code faded to a nonluminescent "Blue Screen of Death" hue, and in the center of the scroll, new symbols formed. These characters glowed with a haunting antilight, a blackness on the other side of shadow. The symbols themselves were formed with violent, harsh strokes, as though each glyph was designed to deliver pain to the scroll as much as to convey information. "Dude…" Beast Boy whispered, shocked by the pure malice in the figures. "What is this?"

"This is the written language of demons," Raven explained. "It's…usually written on the hides of the messengers. I'm no master, but I think I can make this out. Let me see…" After several minutes of hushed silence, she suddenly gasped, stood, and started out of the room.

"Raven!" Beast Boy cried, "Where are you going?"

"Please, Beast Boy," she answered, "don't follow me. This won't be pretty." As she walked towards her destination, she muttered, "I'll make sure of it." Calling forth dark energies, she reformed her uniform around her, and stormed into her room. There, she violently pulled open a trunk she'd been telling herself to destroy for a long while. Within lay only one object: A single book, its cover adorned with the face of a dragon and a smooth black gemstone. Glaring at the tome, Raven spat the verse that had just appeared on the scroll:

"_The darkest Mox._

_The easiest find._

_Held in the clutches_

_Of the seemingly kind._

_He's deceived you before_

_He could still yet._

_So keep your head when you_

_Get the Mox Jet."_

The book seemed to respond to this canto, and flapped open to a torn page. The remaining portion contained a pair of illustrated eyes, slit-pupiled and filled with darkness. "Why, Raven," the book purred, "I wasn't expecting to see you again."

The half-demon glared and snapped "Quiet, Malchior. I'm not here to waste my time with you again."

"Really?" The manuscript may have been made of paper and leather, but the dragon's silver tongue still lay within. "I wouldn't have called our past rendezvous a 'waste.' Besides, that lovely poem you recited couldn't have just written itself. How long did it take to compose?"

"Actually, it _did_ write itself, and your flattery won't work anymore." Raven was barely able to keep her rage from telekinetically manifesting itself. "I've seen you for what you really are, an overgrown lizard trying to escape its cage by any means necessary."

"Well," continued the book, unfazed, "if you didn't come to catch up, then why did you come at all?"

"For the Mox Jet. You have it. I need it." Raven clearly wanted to get this exchange over with as soon as possible.

"So, you finally recognize my prize." The printed eyes waxed nostalgic. "I encountered it in the ruins of a plague-ridden kingdom, in the rotting hands of the dead king. It brought forth a host of demons to defend it, but I easily dispatched them. It soon became my greatest treasure, and with its power I nearly conquered the world, were it not for that meddling Rorek."

"Spare me," Raven growled, "I don't care how you got it, what matters now is that I take it from you."

The inked eyes flashed with menace. "Not until you tell me why. Why so interested in dark magics? Did my instruction give you a taste for power, a desire to embrace your inner fiend?"

Raven's face became a mask of fury. "Stop it."

Malchior pressed on. "Do you secretly desire to rule this world? Perhaps even unseat your father? You really are more like him than you think."

She covered her ears in desperation, regretting that she ever trusted this lying snake enough to tell him of her heritage. "Enough!"

The eyes on the page narrowed. "Or is it for a more noble cause? Do you think you can destroy that distilled darkness? Why try? To protect your city? Your friends? Whatever swain you grabbed onto to comfort you after my betrayal?"

Raven's eyes, shut from frustration and misery, snapped open. All four of them. "That's ENOUGH!" she cried, and her room trembled from the outburst. Rising above the floor, ribbons of blackness flowed out from her shadow and entwined themselves around the tome, snapping it shut.

Malchior, knowing his freedom was nigh, decided to give his former acolyte one last prod. "That's it, isn't it? You're worried about the welfare of your lover! Who is it? The masked boy? The armored chap? Or perhaps that green twit you'd always prattle on about."

Raven screamed in pure wrath upon the mention of Beast Boy. The bands of blackness convulsed in sympathy and, suddenly razor sharp, turned the book into little more than confetti. Black vapor oozed out from the shredded remnants as Malchior laughingly assembled his spectral form. He coalesced into a dragon-headed serpent of dark mist, and was about to deliver a final coy remark when the tendrils of dark energy penetrated his gaseous form. No one, Malchior included, would expect them to have much effect, but the shade twisted and screamed in agony, slowly, painfully, and irreversibly fading from this life.

Another voice, deep yet whisper quiet, resonating with the echoes of catacombs and necropoli, and thick as tar, began to chuckle. _Beautiful, deadly, and incredibly vindictive. You, my dear, are everything I could ever dream off._

Raven, still largely demonic, merely turned her head towards the source of the telepathic disturbance and growled. The Mox Jet shone lustrously, a simple oval of near-perfect blackness framed in clearly pure gold. The luster and sepulchral aura were irresistible to the dark creature hovering between hero and hellspawn. She reached for it and put the jewel around her neck before even thinking about it.

As the gem slipped around Raven's neck, dark energy crackled around her. Her soulself suddenly appeared, indistinguishable from her cloak, and enveloped much of her body. Her hands and feet transformed into dark, scaled, and clawed parodies of their human counterparts, tearing apart boots and gloves alike. Finally, her eyes darkened to solid slits of angry, violent violet, and her second pair followed suit. Then another pair opened above those. Then a few appeared on the back of her head. Soon, the haunting eyes began to open over Raven's entire body, erupting from her soulself in a variety of sizes, from a huge single eye on her trunk to tiny ones around the claws of what were once her hands.

Cackling viciously, she rocketed through the upper floors of Titans Tower, phasing through them as though they were nothing. Once in the open air, the new demoness screamed in joy as raw black mana coursed through her every cell. The very atmosphere shook with her might, and that vibration quickly set off the something-bad-is-happening alarms in the Tower.

Racing to ops, Robin pushed back a feeling of pride that the rest of the team was already assembled. "What happen?" he cried.

Starfire turned to him from the console she was plugging away at. Matter-of-factly, she explained, "Somebody set up us the bomb."

Cyborg, diligently working at the main console (a.k.a. the big screen TV) called out "We get signal!"

"What?" Robin wasn't expecting this sudden shaking to come with a message.

Cyborg pressed the necessary key sequence as he intoned "Main screen turn on."

The screen flickered to life. On it was a dark, polyoptic figure that was still somehow recognizable as Raven. Beast Boy simply stared in shock at this transformation. Robin was able to vocalize his surprise. "It's you!"

"How are you gentlemen?" mocked this strange new Raven. "All your base are belong to us."

Robin collapsed in shock and pounded the floor with his fist. "What you say?"

She continued. "You are on the way to destruction. You have no chance to survive, make your time." Laughing sinisterly, she closed the channel.

The moment having passed, Robin resumed normal grammar, along with his standard catalog of catchphrases: "Titans, GO!"

ENDCHAPTERTHIRTEENENDCHAPTERTHIRTEENENDCHAPTERTHIRTEEN

That's right. I killed a villain, made an All Your Base reference, and turbocharged Raven's demon side all in one chapter. Fear my mighty narrative powers, puny mortals! Bow before me, and placate me with reviews. Do it now, lest I consume thee with fava beans and a nice Chianti!


	14. Mox Jet plus Raven equals DOOM!

Hi, everyone. Sorry for the missed update, my Document Manager kept choking on this chapter for some reason. Sadly, it looks like only one chapters getting up this week. Oh well.

Now then, before I start, I should note two things: 1. There probably won't be any more Internet kitsch references. 2. The giant robot from this chapter is from the comic based on the show (but probably not the comic on which the show is based. Try to keep up with me, folks.) Now, to paraphrase Mandark, enough with the talk, let's get back to the punching!

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Teen Titans, Magic: the Gathering, or Zero Wing. DC, Wizards of the Coast, and Sega are the ones to praise/blame, not me.

MECHVSDEMONNOCONTESTMECHVSDEMONNOCONTESTMECHVSDEMONNOCONTEST

The All Your Base moment having passed, Robin resumed normal grammar, along with his standard catalog of catchphrases: "Titans, GO!"

"Umm, Robin?" called Cyborg, "Raven's right outside the Tower. We don't really need to 'go' anywhere."

The leader's eyes narrowed. "We really don't have time for witty repartee, Cyborg. We've seen what Raven is capable of, and that was before she transformed into…" He gestured towards the screen, in an attempt to express the inexpressible horror Raven had become. "That. Prepare for emergency plan TGB-5."

Cyborg's eyes widened in surprise. Beast Boy gaped in shock. Starfire gasped, "But Robin, we are only to use plan TGB-5 when-"

"It's when." The Boy Wonder cut her off, but was soon stopped himself by another.

"You can't do this!" Beast Boy exclaimed. "That thing could kill her!"

Robin was not amused. "Beast Boy, at the moment Raven constitutes a major threat to the city. We have no idea what she's capable of, or how much control she even has over her powers anymore. Besides," Robin looked down in worry. "We don't even know if she…can be killed anymore."

"That's all you can say?" shouted the shifter, "That's all she is to you? 'A threat to the city'? Well she's more than that! She's a Titan, a friend, one who has fought for and earned our trust!"

Cyborg put his hand on his green friend's shoulder. "BB, you saw that thing on the screen. That wasn't Raven. Not anymore."

"No!" By this point, there were tears in Beast Boy's eyes. "I refuse to believe that Raven is gone for good! There's no way!"

Robin's patience ran out there. "Beast Boy, we don't have time for this. We have to stop Raven before she does something terrible. You're coming with us. That's an order."

The two heroes glared at each other, and Beast Boy said the only thing he could think of that would convince his superior. "Would you go if it was Starfire?"

Robin narrowed his eyes, the only external show of his internal struggle. There was a long pause. "Robin?" cooed Starfire.

"Starfire," the leader said finally. "you can pilot the T-Ship on your own, right?" She nodded, and he turned to Beast Boy. "Fine. You may stay. But if you can think of anything that might help, either tell us or do it yourself." The shifter nodded. "OK then. Titans, execute plan TGB-5!"

With that, the three Titans that would face their former ally all moved for the garage. "Robin!" cried Beast Boy. Robin stopped and turned back. "Thanks." The leader nodded and kept moving.

Outside, Raven exulted in the newfound energy coursing through her form. It permeated her very being, enhancing everything that she was. No longer a confused, weak little girl, she was now a mighty, nigh-immortal demoness. The reverie was broken only when the three familiar Titan vehicles launched out of the Tower. Cyborg in the T-Car, Starfire in the T-Ship, and Robin in the R-Cycle all emerged from the giant consonant, but didn't strike her immediately. Instead, they performed a complex maneuver to arrange themselves properly, then all three flipped a switch used only once before.

After engaging the switch, the T-Car split into legs and hips, shifting Cyborg's seat into the pelvic area. The T-Ship docked with the auto, shifting itself into arms and a body. Starfire's central cockpit merely changed orientation to accommodate the new device she would be operating. Lastly, the R-Cycle leapt of the roof of the Tower, landing squarely in the dock designed for it in the T-Ship. A face plate slid into place over the motorcycle, and it adjusted to form Robin's cockpit for the new machine. The Titans Go-Bot 5 was formed.

"Well," Raven crowed in her new inhuman croak of a voice, "that was impressive. A shame it was for naught."

"Naught this!" cried Robin, as the Go-Bot charged the former heroine.

The dark girl merely smirked, then cried out a new chant. "Trigon Yawgmoth Mephistos!" Every one of the eyes covering her body widened, and midnight energy screamed forth from them. The blasts skewered the giant robot dozens of times, and it crashed into the bay as its software followed suit, hit with the equivalent of several billion viruses.

Beast Boy watched this sinister spectacle in horror, and instinctively dove out of the main room window to help the rest of the team. Shifting to gull form midway through the drop, he surged towards the fiendish figure to do what he did best: harass Raven. By swooping, diving, and pecking at the occasional eye, he managed to get her attention long enough for the other Titans to escape the collapsed mech.

"Enough of this!" Raven cried, and slashed at the green nuisance. However, instead of impaling Beast Boy, she merely gave him a place to perch. Snarling, the demon tried shaking her arm to jostle the seabird, but he moved onto her shoulders and resumed human form.

Hanging on the being he still thought of as a friend, Beast Boy tried to reason with Raven. "Raven, you have to stop this!"

"Beast…Boy?" the figure whispered, her main eyes slowly fading to a more human color scheme.

"It's me, Rae. You have to snap out of this! I don't know what's making you go all super-creepy, but if it's my fault, I'm sorry!"

Deep within her eroding soul, Raven couldn't help but chuckle. _I'm being possessed by an object of near unlimited energy, my powers have been multiplied a thousandfold, and he thinks he's to blame? Classic Beast Boy._

"Beast Boy, it's…not you." Raven struggled to speak, fighting the clutches of the jewel around her neck with every syllable. "It's…the Mox Jet. I-"

Struck with excitement, the shifter interrupted. "You found it? Great! How do we stop it?"

"I'm trying…to tell you. I'm-"

Unfortunately, Beast Boy's mind was already bubbling with possible ways to deal with the dark gem. "Do we use holy water? A hammer? Maybe that mana alliance thing that I beat the Pearl with? What about the Pearl itself? What if you wear that, too?"

"Beast Boy…let me-"

"Wait, I've got it!" If it wouldn't have made him drop, the were-everything would've smacked his fist into his open palm. "An army of squirrels! That's the answer for everything!"

This final exclamation was so ridiculous that it made Raven forget all about the other presence in her mind. While she was trying to figure out exactly how squirrels would help the situation, the Jet took advantage of her distracted state to regain control. Her eyes returned to an eldritch shade of indigo, and, guided by the black Mox, she intoned "Sohtniz Noirtem Htaraza!" Once the final bizarre syllable was pronounced, black spikes erupted from Raven's back, piercing Beast Boy's hands, limbs, and chest. She turned to watch his look of shock as he slipped off of her and into the bay.

ENDCHAPTERFOURTEENENDCHAPTERFOURTEENENDCHAPTERFOURTEEN

Best cliffie yet! Does Beast Boy die? Has he died already? Why hasn't Robin used a contingency plan by now? How exactly _would_ an army of squirrels help this situation, anyway? All these questions, and some you never even thought of asking, will be answered next chapter. Until then, review! Review like your life depends on it! (You never know, it just might :D )


	15. From the Jaws of Defeat

Hello again! Thanks go to my reviewers, and to my Document Manager for not gagging on this chapter. I'm proud to say there will be a spike in fluff at the end of this chapter, but please read the whole thing.

DISCLAIMER: I don't own any rights to Teen Titans or Magic: the Gathering. Death and the Death of Rats are the intellectual property of Terry Pratchett. I do not own them or any other characters or natural forces of the Discworld series. Also, credit goes to Farther's "Lessons in Ordinary" for the design of "Normal Raven." I do, however, own a Tidespout Tyrant card. _He unmakes the world in his own image._ So cool!

BLACKMANASPIKESHURTBLACKMANASPIKESHURTBLACKMANASPIKESHURT

While Raven was trying to figure out exactly how squirrels would help the situation, the Mox Jet took advantage of her distracted state to regain control. Her eyes returned to an eldritch shade of indigo, and, guided by the black Mox, she intoned "Sohtniz Noirtem Htaraza!" Once the final bizarre syllable was pronounced, black spikes erupted from Raven's back, piercing Beast Boy's hands, legs, and chest. She turned to watch his look of shock as he slipped off of her and into the bay.

At first, a look of sadistic triumph was plastered across the darkling's face. Slowly, however, a new emotion took its place. Slowly, many of the eyes adorning Raven's head dimmed and shut, and her face, though still bordered by demonic flesh, changed back into one recognizable as human. Then something even more human happened to the floating figure. She began to cry.

"Beast Boy…" she whispered, tears streaming down her cheeks and irritating the eyes around her neck. As the shapeshifter's limp body hit the water with a splash, the tears began to truly flood out. "NOOOOOO!" Raven cried; anguish permeating the scream. She looked at her hands, shocked to behold dusky, scaled claws where her human extremities usually lay. "What's happened to me?" she muttered. She then looked around in horror. Apparently, when Beast Boy hit the water, he was following the Go-Bot's example. 'We only use that thing in extreme emergencies,' she thought, 'was I dangerous enough for that kind of last-ditch tactic?"

_My dear,_ the Jet oozed, _if you would be so kind as to give me the reins again? This lack of death and suffering is honestly getting somewhat boring._

Raven at last looked down, to the source of the oily psychic voice. The black Mox was around her neck, shining with a negative aura as it poured dark energy into her. "This is horrible," she said, astonished by the destruction around her.

_I agree,_ the black jewel replied. _Less shock and appall, more with the killing of things!_

"Shut up." The return of Raven's normal face apparently came with her classic monotone.

_My dear,_ the Jet began, _I'm afraid we're stuck with one ano-_

Raven grabbed the gem with one claw, pulled, broke the chain, and tossed the artifact aside. "I said 'shut up.'"

Even in thought, the Doppler effect could be heard as the Mox Jet cried _Impossible!_ before hitting the beach at the foot of Titans Tower.

"Beast Boy." Raven repeated. Who knew how long he'd been injured while she had been making small talk with a piece of jewelry? As her body started shedding its more demonic accoutrements, her mind reached out, searching for a familiar presence. She could barely sense the changeling, his life almost totally extinguished. Frantically, she mentally plucked him from the sea and on to the shore, rocketing to his side in the process, not noticing her flight was becoming less telekinetic and more gravitational.

Raven's landing was little more than a dignified crash. She ignored this and rushed to Beast Boy's side, summoning as much healing power as she could muster, but no blue glow came to her hands. "What?" Raven's question was answered as her skin tone changed before her eyes, going from a familiar ashen gray to a pale peach. Looking up, she could just see that her hair had changed shade from half-demon purple to a distressingly human brown. "No!" she exclaimed. "The stupid Mox tapped out my powers!" Beast Boy's breathing, already shallow, began to grow desperate and irregular. Raven laid her face in his bleeding chest, weeping, "I'm sorry Gar. I'm so sorry" over and over.

INANOTHERSREALMINANOTHERSREALMINANOTHERSREALMINANOTHERSREALM

"H-hello?" Beast Boy called nervously. He had every reason to be unnerved. He stood in an ominous room. A huge grandfather clock with a pendulum Poe would've been proud of ticked with deep resonating sounds. The face gave no time, but read "Too Late," and the entire structure made the shapeshifter regret every alarm clock he ever smashed. The room seemed at once restrictively small and staggeringly enormous. The only thing that gave the slightest sense of normalcy was an umbrella stand near the point he was standing. Beast Boy looked at it, desperate for any sort of familiar object.

Oh.

Never mind.

A scythe, blade glowing blue with the very essence of sharpness, rested in the otherwise homey container.

"Dude…" Beast Boy whispered. Suddenly, he heard footsteps coming towards him. They were slow, packed with intent, and rattled slightly. Underneath them came somewhat more frantic steps, lighter and even more rattling, but still somehow as menacing. The changeling's eyes widened when he beheld the owners of the respective steps.

The first being was a tall figure dressed in a black cowled robe. Underneath the cowl, its eyes glowed in an infinite blue that seemed to draw the green teen's soul out of his body. The second appeared to be the first in miniature, but its cowl was down, revealing that the glowing blue eyes were housed in a rat skull. The first carefully looked at Beast Boy, then turned to its minute companion. **IT WOULD APPEAR**, it intoned in a voice like lead on tombstone, **WE HAVE SOMETHING OF A UNIQUE SITUATION WITH THIS ONE**.

**SQUEAK**, replied the second figure.

**TRUE, BUT GETTING THE TIMING RIGHT COULD TAKE A FEW TRIES. WE DON'T EXACTLY HAVE ANY SPARES TO WORK ON.**

**SQUEAK SQUEAK SQU-SQUEAK.**

**WELL, YOU DON'T HAVE TO BE SO CRUDE ABOUT IT.**

**SQUEAK SQUEAK.**

**I KEEP TELLING YOU, RATS ARE DIFFERENT.**

**SQUEAK SQUEAK SQUEE SQU-SQUEAK.**

**TRUE…**

"Um, excuse me?" Beast Boy managed to utter. The two figures turned to face him. "What's going on here?"

**WELL,** began the first figure, **WE'RE ARGUING OVER WHO SHOULD BE THE ONE TO REAP YOUR SOUL, SINCE YOU FALL UNDER BOTH OF OUR JURISDICTIONS.**

"Oh." The shapeshifter paused. "WHAT!"

The taller figure sighed. **IF ONLY WE DIDN'T ALWAYS HAVE TO DO THE SUPERHEROES.**

**SQUEAK.**

**TRUE, BUT WE WOULDN'T HAVE TO DO ALL OF THEM PERSONALLY.**

Something finally clicked in Beast Boy's mind, something he'd been trying very hard not to realize. "I'm…dead?"

The tall figure turned to him testily. In its haste, its cowl fell off, revealing the naked human skull of Death.

**YES,** replied the ultimate reality, **WELL, ALMOST. YOU WILL BE IN A MATTER OF SECONDS, WE'D JUST LIKE TO GET THIS SORTED OUT BEFORE YOU OFFICIALLY EXPIRE. **With that, he resumed the argument with his rodent counterpart. **NOW WHAT IF WE…**

BACKATTHETOWERBACKATTHETOWERBACKATTHETOWERBACKATTHETOWER

_Ahem._ Raven looked up to see a shining light hanging above her.

"No," she gasped. "Are you…Garfield's soul?"

_Flattering as that is, no,_ the light source replied.

The depleted damsel recognized the entity's voice. "It's you. The Mox Pearl."

_Yes,_ the white Mox replied. _"When old Blacky was neutralized, I became able to move about for a time. Balance in magic, you know."_

Raven was desperate for time. "Look, I don't care if you flew out Robin's ass, (A/N: He loves that donkey.) just hurry up and heal Beast Boy!"

_Fine, fine. As long as you don't ask me any favors next time I'm up._ With that, the Pearl's light focused and intensified, turning into a sort of recuperative spotlight on Beast Boy. Raven watched in relief and astonishment as the gaping wounds in the green teen were slowly sealed, not even leaving scars behind. Once the deed was done, the Pearl fell to the sand. _There you are. He was lucky. His powers give him great recuperative properties, and he's very tenacious to boot. Most would've died instantly after that kind of treatment, but he kept clinging to life._

Smiling faintly, Raven nodded. "Yeah, he never knows when to give up."

_Indeed._ The Pearl gave a telepathic yawn. _If you'll excuse me, I'll return to dormancy now._

"Of course. No hard feelings for the Watchtower."

_Of course. I suppose I might have been a little overzealous at the time. Well, good night._ With that, the Pearl fell silent.

BACKATDEATHSHOUSEBACKATDEATHSHOUSEBACKATDEATHSHOUSE

**SO, IT'S AGREED THEN? **Death asked the Death of Rats.

**SQUEAK**, it replied, nodding its skull.

**ALRIGHT THEN-** Death paused, pulling something out of his robes. It was an hourglass, with green glass and animals carved throughout its design. It read "Garfield Logan" on the bottom, and the sand was almost empty. **_EMPHASIS ON 'WAS'_** Death thought, as sand trickled slowly into the top bulb, not from the bottom, but from a white glow near the top of the glass. Death turned back to were the cause of this confusion was standing. **WELL, IT LOOKS AS THOUGH YOU'VE BEEN POSTPONED. SORRY FOR THE INCONVENIENCE.** He paused, realizing he was addressing empty space. **WHERE DID HE RUN OFF TO?**

ATTHETOWERSBEACHATTHETOWERSBEACHATTHETOWERSBEACH

Just then, Beast Boy stirred. Raven watched as his emerald eyes miraculously opened. "Uggh," he groaned, then looked up to see Raven's face hovering over his. Her eyes were blue. "YAH!"

Both teens recoiled from the sudden screech. Raven awkwardly grinned, and said "Um, sorry?"

He gave his famous fanged smile and replied, "As long as you promise to regularly cut your nails…and shave your back."

"Idiot," she muttered, then, quieting his angry replies, lightly kissed him on the cheek.

The expression on the unsuspecting shapeshifter has priceless. He raised a finger, and queried "Quick check: Was that an "I'm glad my teammate is still alive" kiss, or an "I love you, don't try anything that stupid again" kiss?"

"Both."

"Oh." He paused to consider this for a moment, and then resumed his grin. "OH!" With that, he gave her a kiss that could only be classified as "I love you too, and my hormones are in full swing." As the two came up for air, he gave a sly grin and noted, "You know, this is probably the longest you've ever smiled in your life, and I caused it."

She replied with five words Beast Boy doubted he'd ever hear Raven direct to him in his life. "Shut up and kiss me."

And as he did, the sun rose.

ENDCHAPTERFIFTEENENDCHAPTERFIFTEENENDCHAPTERFIFTEENENDCHAPTERFIFTEEN

w00t! BB/Rae kiss! Yes, they've confessed their love, and with only three Moxen obtained. I had to deplete Raven's powers to make sure the city wasn't leveled during their makeout session. Send me reviews, people, and if you are afraid to, let this Van Gogh paraphrasis change your mind:

"If a little voice in your mind says 'You can't write,' write. It will silence the voice."

Now go shut up your little voices!


	16. Mecha and Mushy Bits

Greetings again, folks! A word of warning: Updates may become somewhat more haphazard in the future. My computer privileges are currently in a questionable state, and I'm not sure if I'll have access eevery Wednesday and Saturday. Cross your fingers…

DISCLAIMER: I don't own Teen Titans, Viewtiful Joe, or the movie Dogma. I do own Rufus the cyborg teddy bear; so citing me if you use him would be appreciated.

As the two kissed, the sun rose, and with it rose Titans Tower. The giant consonant rumbled as it began to rise off the island, disrupting the snogfest the two teens had been enjoying up until then. The horizontal portions of the T shape bent and elongated into arms, as the ops center rose above the intersection point within a giant head shape. As the trunk of the T split into legs, a certain half-mechanical superteen gloated over his ultimate creation.

"Booyah! Mega Raven, say hello to the Tower Majin 6!" Cyborg cheered.

"Um, Cyborg?" Robin interrupted the mechanoman's revery to bring unwelcome news. "I'm not picking up Raven's powers on the scanners."

"What?" Cyborg frowned, determined to make sure the maiden activation of the TM6 would be one to remember. "Do another sweep. She's gotta be around here somewhere."

"Friend Cyborg, I have examined Robin's scans and they show no sign of the negative energy that the very frightening new Raven was emitting." Starfire was almost as sad looking as Cyborg.

Noting this, the technoteen patted her on the shoulder. "I know Star, I wanted to use the Puree Reality function too."

"Actually, friend," she corrected, "I am merely conflicted between disappointment for losing the opportunity for a climactic battle, and relief that our friend Raven is no longer even more frightening than usual."

Robin nodded, sympathizing with the alien. He was about to order the Tower's reversion when a communicator signal showed up on the main screen. The face seemed familiar to the trio, but they knew no one who looked like Raven, but with normally colored features. "This is a reserved frequency," Robin stated, "please switch to another one now."

The stranger's eyes narrowed. "Guys, it's me. Raven."

"Uh huh," Cyborg replied sarcastically, "and I'm the queen of Bulgaria."

"Your majesty," countered the unknown girl, bowing her head.

"Look, girl," the half-man continued, "Raven has gray skin, purple hair, and purple eyes. You do kinda look like her, but in the Unusually Colored Body Parts column, you're getting' a zero out of three."

The stranger sighed. "I don't have time for this. Look, Beast Boy is still weak, my powers have been depleted, and we both could use some time in the medbay. Now please let us in."

Robin responded only after thinking long and hard about the situation at hand. "Only if you tell us something only the real Raven would know, and I don't mean something you could just read off a fansite."

The possibly-Raven sighed again. "Fine. Robin, your parents were acrobats. Cyborg, you named your teddy bear Rufus after the thirteenth apostle in _Dogma_. Starfire, your favorite holiday is _Florpniginalk,_ the Tamaranean festival of the annual _florpnig_ hunt." She smirked as she saw their shocked faces on her communicator. One of the advantages of usually having near-perfect emotional control was that Raven had become the team's de facto counselor. She was an excellent listener and advisor, and now she used the former skill to her advantage.

Still, Robin remained skeptical. "I don't know, that could have been a lucky guess."

"Yes," agreed Starfire, "And even the smallest child knows of the joyous festivities of _Florpniginalk_!"

"Uh, Star?" Cyborg asked, "How many people on _Earth_ have heard of Florpni…glib…nalack?"

"_FLORPNIGINALK!_" The alien cried, infuriated by her teammate's difficulty with the name of her favorite holiday. She calmed down almost instantly as she considered his question. "However, friend, you do make an excellent point. It is possible this seemingly human girl is indeed Raven."

"I know it's Raven," Cyborg insisted. "I never tell anyone else about Rufus!" Noting the stares he was receiving from the others in the ops room, he looked down and mumbled, "until now…"

Raven put on a mask of calm, the closest thing to a smile she dared. "Great, now that we've confirmed I'm me, can you guys turn that oversized action figure back into the Tower?"

Cyborg's brow wrinkled in anger. "Fine, but the next time you call my Tower Majin 6 an 'action figure,' I'm having Star redecorate your room." After savoring Raven's look of horror, he closed the communication channel and reverted the giant robot to the giant consonant we all know and love.

Returning her communicator to its usual location, Raven entered the Tower with Beast Boy, each leaning on the other for support. "So…" she began awkwardly, "do we tell the others about what happened?"

Her companion's brow furrowed in confusion. "I'm pretty sure they were there for it."

Shaking her head at her love's obliviousness, Raven rephrased, "Not that, the…kiss."

Blushing, Beast Boy replied, "Oh, that. Um, do you?"

She shook her head. "Not unless they need to know." The two had made it to the elevator and now entered it. Pressing the button for ops, she turned to Beast Boy and said emphatically, "They **don't** need to know."

The changeling nodded vigorously. "Yeah, they'll never let us hear the end of it." His expression returned to one of awkward embarrassment. "So, um, how long have you-?"

"Since the Malchior incident," Raven replied. "That was when I started appreciating you."

"For what?"

"You're always there for me. It doesn't matter what the problem is, or what risks you'd have to take. If I'm in danger, you charge in to help regardless."

"Actually," the shapeshifter noted, "I feel like you been doing the same for me. You usually think about it more, but you do help me whenever and however you can." He rubbed his head nervously, "That you're beautiful doesn't hurt either." Both blushed at this comment, each noting the incredible slowness of the elevator today.

"So, what about you?" Raven asked, the blush contrasting far less with her skin tone than usual.

"I think…ever since I met you. You were so sad, so withdrawn. It almost felt like my duty to open you up. After Terra-" Beast Boy paused. Raven's eyes, while incapable of multiplying, filled with hate. "Well, I guess that was when I understood the difference between a crush and what I feel for you." Almost terminally embarrassed and desperate for a change in subject, he asked, "So, does Cy really have a teddy bear named Rufus?"

Raven smiled. "Yes. It actually kind of looks like he did when we were inside Mumbo's hat, only cute."

"Like me?" Beast Boy blurted, unable to stop the comment.

Making sure there were no cameras on the elevator car, Raven kissed his cheek. "Yes, like you. Only with more circuitry and less fuzz."

The question that had been nagging at Beast Boy since their earlier kiss resurfaced. "So why hasn't anything gone all explodey when you kiss me?" Slicking back his hair, he attempted looking at the telepath seductively. "Is it my irresistible charms?"

She rolled her eyes. "Yes, Beast Boy. Your suave sophistication overcame the residual influence of one of the most powerful demons of all time." Breaking out of sarcasm when she saw him start to droop, she continued. "You've probably noticed that I'm looking, well-"

"Normal?" the shapeshifter offered.

"I was going to say 'less gray,' but I suppose 'normal' works. Anyway, it's because using the Mox Jet to the extent that I did totally depleted my powers, and when they went, so did the other marks of my demonic heritage."

Beast Boy's face became a mask of worry. "You're powerless? What if Robin tries to kick you of the Titans?"

"Don't worry, it's only temporary," she said soothingly, "I'd estimate a week at most until my powers regenerate on their own."

"Oh, that's OK then."

"Not entirely…" she spoke hesitantly.

"Why?" Beast Boy asked, "Is there something else I should know?"

"Sort of." Raven blushed a little. "Well, we won't be able to search for the next Mox until my powers restore themselves, and I'll be able to feel emotion without repercussion for a little while, so…wanna go out some time this week?"

The changeling broke into his trademark grin and held the embarrassed girl's hands in his own. "Do I ever! Rae, it's a date."

The doors of the elevator opened, and Raven frantically pulled her hands out of his. "Thank you," she whispered, and the two exited the elevator.

LATERTHATNIGHTLATERTHATNIGHTLATERTHATNIGHTLATERTHATNIGHT

After Raven briefed everyone on the situation with her powers, life returned to relative normalcy in the Tower. Beast Boy and Cyborg played video games, though the green teen was less focused than usual, surreptitiously watching a certain disempowered half-demon read. Likewise, Raven was too busy sneaking looks at the antics of a certain shapeshifter to focus much on her book. Fortunately, everyone else was too absorbed in their actual activities to notice the glances.

Come bedtime (which, given the early start, was around three in the afternoon,) everyone slept like rocks, exhausted from the intense battle. The only entity active was the Mox Jet, resting in the chest in which Malchior's tome once lay. _One day, my dear,_ the jewel thought, _you will return to me. I'll make certain of it._ And Raven slept, oblivious and smiling.

ENDCHAPTERSIXTEENENDCHAPTERSIXTEENENDCHAPTERSIXTEEN

Okay, folks, I need your opinions on where this story's going to go. Do I spend a few chapters on the ensuing week of fluff, or skip past it and get right to the action-packed retrieval of the Mox Ruby? Tell me in your reviews, and your wishes will be my commands.


	17. Meeting of the Minds

Hi, everyone! Well, many a vote has been cast (and I mean _many_ a vote. Chapter 16 got more reviews than any before it!), and it looks like the consensus is fluff before action. How much fluff appears to be a point of dissension, but I've decided…wait, it's far more fun to keep you guessing how much I'm putting in. It's fun being the author. OK, story time.

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Teen Titans or Magic: the Gathering. Ideas for the emotional shades were inspired by the webcomic Sins, which I do not own. (URL: http / www . sincomics . com , without spaces, of course.) Check it out, it's fun!

AMINDISAWONDERFULTHINGTOTASTEAMINDISAWONDERFULTHINGTOTASTE

As Raven slept, many of her emotions were trying to recuperate from the ordeal she had just undergone. Rage and Brave, exhausted from overuse as the main drives of the demonic Raven's form, were comatose. Knowledge suffered from a psychic hangover, her mind reeling from the forbidden facts that had been forcibly foisted upon it by the Mox Jet. Happy was lying on the ground with a grin plastered on her face, twitching uncontrollably as she schismed between Raven's usual concealed joy and demonic, psychotic glee. Rude was also motionless, but unlike her pink-caped counterpart she instead was in a recuperative trance, sending waves of tranquility and calm through Raven's psyche. Wisdom and Timid, though weak from the dark episode, also tended to the overwhelmed emotions as best they could.

As for Affection, she was in the lotus position, meditating in her own realm. To understand what she was doing, one must first understand the nature of her realm. The realm of Raven's Affection is best described as a combination of an arboretum and an art gallery. Everything to which Raven feels at least neutrally disposed is represented in this realm by a plant, a piece of art, or both. The lush grass carpeting the realm represents the many things Raven either knows nothing about or is indifferent towards, such as particle physics, jellyfish, and nihilism. Things she actually likes mature into shrubs or rough sketches. That which she adores becomes towering trees or artistic masterpieces, sometimes represented as the latter displayed on the former.

Affection was meditating before the ultimate representation of her expression. It was plantform and artwork combined into one, a huge redwood shaped into a sculpture while still alive. The figure's skin tone was captured perfectly by the leaves growing wherever his exposed flesh would be. Yes, this arboreal monument was the representation of Raven's feelings towards Beast Boy, and ever since the kiss the two shared, its flowers had opened into full bloom, beautiful despite their alteration of the color scheme.

As the purple-cloaked avatar concentrated before this living sculpture, a ribbon of black energy, tinged with royal indigo, emerged from her chakra. (A/N: Since Raven's powers are part of her mental self-image, her emotions aren't tapped out.) It entered the foliated forehead of the tree, and from there exited Raven's mind via her own chakra.

As the tendril of mental force snaked through the abandoned hallways of Titans Tower, passing through solid obstructions like a stiletto through fog, it seemed to be hunting for something. Occasionally, it paused and seemed to sniff the air, as though looking for something. Eventually, it found its way to a specific door, and phased through it. Winding through the confines of the resulting room, the vinelike emanation connected itself with the occupant's forehead.

INSIDEBEASTBOYSMINDINSIDEBEASTBOYSMINDINSIDEBEASTBOYSMINDINSIDEBEASTBOYSMIND

The line of magic, after entering this new mind, coalesced into a violet shaded shade, a monochromatic silhouette of Raven. This manifestation of Affection began to explore Beast Boy's mental realm. Of course, without a rigorous meditation regimen like Raven's, his mind was nowhere near her level of organization. Bits of biomes were scattered in a mismatched mishmosh. Here, a bit of lush rain forest next to an arid stretch of desert. There, a portion of abyssal plain, Himalaya adjacent. Despite the incredible geodiversity of this mindscape, very few animals seemed to populate it. Affection finally spotted one in a bit of savannah by the animal's aura, identical to Beast Boy's. Swooping down, she attempted telekinetic contact with the beast.

_Can you understand me?_ she thought at the creature. It merely began to laugh uncontrollably. Adjusting her vision from the psychic spectrum to the visible, she realized she had been attempting contact with a pink hyena, which was no convulsing in hysterics. _Clearly Beast Boy's Happiness,_ Affection thought, and rose, looking for her equivalent.

After encountering a yellow dolphin, an orange sloth, and most distressingly of all, a red version of the Man-Beast, Affection finally hit paydirt in a tiny portion of temperate forest. Attracted by the almost unnoticeable indigo tinge to the creature's aura, she swooped down to its altitude and switched to the visible spectrum _before_ trying to communicate with it. Indeed, it was her counterpart: A purple magpie that had lined its nest with what appeared to be pictures of her. She engaged in telepathic contact. _Hello. Do you know who I am?_

The magpie turned to her, dismissed her as not shiny or edible for a moment then realized who she was, regardless of luster. _Oh,_ it responded, _hi, Raven. Hang on for a second._ The bird swooped down to ground level, where it transformed into a purple-skinned version of Beast Boy. Aside from skin tone, he was identical to his mental landlord, down to the Doom Patrol spandex. "So," he began, feigning nonchalance, "come here often?"

Affection's shade landed silently beside him. Unable to speak normally, she telepathically replied, _Actually, I'm not Raven. Well, not all of her._

"Oh." The plum-skinned boy considered this. "So you're one of the other Raven's from in her mind?"

She nodded. _Indeed. I'm here because I have a plan, and the two of us need to collaborate to make it work._

"Why me?"

_Look at the color of your skin._ He did so._ Now look at the color of my, well, everything._ He complied once more. _Notice any similarities?_

Beast Boy's Affection snapped his fingers in realization. "We do the same job!"

Raven's Affection would've smiled if the projection form had a mouth. _Yup. Now listen. After the incident with the Mox Jet, the balance of power in Raven's mind was knocked seriously askew._

"Heh, 'askew.' Fun word." The shade looked at him pointedly. "Sorry, go on."

_Anyway, quite a few emotions are out of commission for a time, and others have been drastically weakened. However, thanks to the tender moments we shared after securing the jewel…_ Both were silent for a moment, fondly remembering their handiwork. _Well, suffice to say, I received a significant portion of Raven's latent power. That's how I was able to get to this mind._

"So," concluded the male Affection, "if we combine the power you've gained with mine, we can…uh, what can we do?"

_We can engineer a shared dream,_ replied the female Affection, _one both Beast Boy ad Raven will have, one that greatly heal the psychological damage both have endured._

"No kidding. This place is even less organized than usual."

_All the more reason to do it._

"So how do we do this?" inquired the changeling-shaped emotion.

_Take my hands._ He did so, noting the almost nonexistent weight. _Now focus all your energy on Raven. The connection I created should do the rest._ The two avatars of fondness concentrated, each on the other. The tendril of energy connecting the two sleeping superheroes, while still bordered by violet, shifted from pure black to a forest camouflage pattern, patches of light green and black emerging and remixing with a deep forest green core. In Raven's mind, the meditating form of Affection had arms outstretched, as a purple mist began to form before them into the shape of Beast Boy. The dream formed.

THENEXTMORNINGTHENEXTMORNINGTHENEXTMORNINGTHENEXTMORNING

It was breakfast time for the Titans. That meant coffee for Robin, mustard-frosted glorg for Starfire, and Cyborg in his chef's hat, firing up the Wafflematic. Beast Boy and Raven entered the main room at the same time, each with a smile on his or her face. Cyborg smirked wickedly upon seeing Beast Boy enter, and exclaimed loudly, "OK, ya'll, hope you're hungry, 'cause it's time for Cyborg's special All-Meat Mega Breakfast!" He watched the changeling eagerly for his reaction to the consumption of so much animal flesh.

There was none. Beast Boy continued as though nothing was said, and began to pour himself a bowl of cereal.

"So," Cyborg continued, undaunted, "that'll be bacon, sausage, ham steak, fried eggs," he slid close to Beast Boy, "or as our resident vegetarian likes to call them: 'helpless chicken embryos.'"

Beast Boy continued to ignore this onslaught on his beliefs, going to the fridge for his morning glass of soy milk.

Cyborg went to his last resort. "Oh yeah, and in order to fit all that meat in the fridge yesterday, I had to throw out anything and everything made from soybeans." The camera in his right shoulder popped up, ready to capture his green teammate's expression for posterity.

It had nothing to click. Beast Boy had shrugged at the lack of his bean-derived beverage and proceeded to eat his cereal dry.

Cyborg wasn't the only one concerned at the calm behavior Beast Boy was displaying. "Uh, Beast Boy?" Robin asked, "You're not mad that Cyborg threw out all your food?"

"Or that he is preparing for us a feast of broiled animal carcasses?" added Starfire.

The changeling shrugged. "Eh, I don't have to eat any of it."

The look of shock on the others' faces only intensified when Raven said, "Beast Boy, since Cyborg threw out all your soy milk, would you like some tea?"

"Sure," he replied. "Cereal?"

"Please."

Cyborg was the first to snap. "Have we unknowingly been transported into an alternate universe where Beast Boy and Raven don't argue with each other?"

Beast Boy finally registered the cries of his semimetallic friend. "No, same universe." He and Raven then said the same thing:

"I just had a really good dream last night."

ENDCHAPTERSEVENTEENENDCHAPTERSEVENTEENENDCHAPTERSEVENTEEN

Making Cyborg go crazy is fun. I hope you liked this chapter, I think it could use a little work. Review please. Flames are always appreciated, as we are approaching the Mox Ruby's time to shine…after an undetermined amount of fluff.


	18. Dating Incognito

Hail, readers! As a certain malicious cheese reminded me, there is such a thing as too much fluff, so I can guarantee this will be the last pure-fluff chapter before we get back to the action. Don't worry, it isn't all nauseatingly sweet in this chapter. Just mostly.

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Teen Titans, Magic: the Gathering, or Lysol. I do own the same T-shirt as Beast Boy, but not the rights to the slogan. I have nothing worth suing over. These are not the droids you're looking for. You want to go home and rethink your life. There is no 19th floor. There is no Miss Zarves.

NOTHINGLASTSFOREVERNOTHINGLASTSFOREVERNOTHINGLASTSFOREVER

Cyborg was the first to snap. "Have we unknowingly been transported into an alternate universe where Beast Boy and Raven don't argue with each other?"

Beast Boy finally registered the cries of his semimetallic friend. "No, same universe." He and Raven then said the same thing:

"I just had a really good dream last night."

The other Titans, as unaware of the cooperation of the two dreamers' Affections as the dreamers themselves, were still astonished at the astonishing lack of antagonism between Beast Boy and Raven. Starfire voiced the trio's confusion this time. "Please, friends. How would a single dream ease the yellings and insults you have so often exchanged in the past?"

The secret couple both seemed very interested in their cereal, and a blush rose on each face. Cyborg, always one to prey upon his teammates' awkwardness, snickered. "C'mon Star, it's obvious." He jerked his thumb towards the flushed Titans. "Last night, these two dreamed somethin' sex-eh with each other."

Raven rose from her seat, pointedly making a lot of noise by doing so. "Cyborg," she warned, "one more ludicrous insinuation like that and I'll-"

"You'll what?" the mechanoman asked confidently. "Your powers aren't working at the moment, Rae, remember?"

She smiled sinisterly. "Oh, _my_ powers aren't working. But I'm not the only source of magic in this Tower." With that, she dipped a hand into a pocket in her uniform (which she was wearing out of habit more than anything,) and pulled out the Mox Sapphire. She shook it meaningfully. "Remember this?"

Cyborg's human eye widened. He remembered being controlled by the cerulean crystal all too well. "Wh-what are you going to do?"

"For that earlier comment? If you had just made your usual accusations of affection, I'd have made you jump out of the Tower. For saying 'sex-eh,' this." With that, she pointed the Sapphire at one of the massive frying pans occupying the stove, and sent a mental command to the gem. Even though its sentience wasn't currently active, it still possessed enough blue magical energy to, say, turn a side of beef into a huge side-of-beef shaped chunk of tofu.

Cyborg, upon seeing this demonstrated, screamed like a four-year old girl. Rushing to the former slab of meat, he promptly lifted the pan, heaved the mass of soy into the sink, then tore the top off a spray can of Lysol and poured the disinfectant onto the cooking implement, chanting "Unclean. Unclean!" the whole time. Only when he had emptied the can of antiseptic did he realize he had burned his hands. Girly screaming once more, he rushed to the sink, but stopped and ran for the nearest bathroom upon seeing the quivering heap of legume curd still awaiting the garbage disposal. As he ran out of the room, Cyborg lamented, "Why? Why was I programmed to feel pain?"

After that spectacle, everyone but Beast Boy decided to leave Raven alone for a while.

THATAFTERNOONTHATAFTERNOONTHATAFTERNOONTHATAFTERNOON

With the others too freaked out to mess with Raven, she and Beast Boy had been given ample "couple time." They decided to take advantage of it by going on their first date. Not wanting to give the tabloids an excuse to start another superhero pregnancy rumor (Wonder Woman still reflexively punched anyone holding a camera.) they decided to go plainclothes.

For Raven, this wasn't hard, as she was already plainskin. Also, as she had told Beast Boy before, she couldn't tolerate wearing Spandex 24/7, and had therefore assembled a small but serviceable casual wardrobe. From it, she picked gray-washed jeans and a white T-shirt with a dark blue hoodie sweatshirt, then waited about twenty minutes for Beast Boy to finish getting ready.

Those twenty minutes were largely spent searching for the hologram rings Cyborg had made for the changeling. Like those used by their inventor during the HIVE infiltration, the rings would give Beast Boy the appearance of normality. Unfortunately, they had been placed in Beast Boy's room, a place in which archeologist majors from Jump City University occasionally requested permission to dig. Clothes were a simple matter, as the shapeshifter had only one non-uniform outfit that was clean enough not to knock out canaries, as Beast Boy himself had checked. It consisted of red corduroys and a black T-shirt that read "I'm lazy, loud, immature, and disorganized, BUT I'M FUN!" It was complemented by a green windbreaker.

As the two exited the tower, Cyborg nervously peeked his head out of his room, prepared to make a comment about the couple as they passed by, even if it killed him. A sudden flash of blue light sent him cowering back into his room, barb unspoken.

"Man," said Beast Boy, "these holo-ring things go really bright when you turn them on."

INTHEPARKINTHEPARKINTHEPARKINTHEPARKINTHEPARKINTHEPARKINTHEPARK

Beast Boy sighed contentedly. All was well. Raven and he had gone to the Titans' usual pizzeria, and while it felt weird not to get their usual table, not being surrounded by obsessed fans reminded him there were some perks to being incognito. Now, they were lying on the grass, watching clouds roll by, holding hands. Just as he was about to fall asleep, Raven said something.

He grudgingly returned to consciousness. "Whazzat?"

"I said," she repeated, "that this is nice."

"Yeah," Beast Boy replied, and started to fall asleep again.

"But," Raven continued, getting up, "I'd like to do something more while I still can."

The holographically cloaked changeling rose as well. "What do you mean?"

She tried to explain. "I feel like a starving girl who'd been given twenty minutes at an all-you-can-eat buffet. I want to get as much on my plate as I can, but right now it feels like I'm stuck at the salad bar, grabbing one chickpea at a time." She frowned. "I don't even like chickpeas."

Beast Boy attempted to follow the extended metaphor. "Soooo, you want to go to a salad bar?"

"No, I want to do something that will make me have an emotional response! I want to savor this freedom while I can! C'mon!" she shouted, pulling him to his feet. "Let's go _do_ something!"

"Waah!" cried Beast Boy as she dragged him out of the park.

After getting pulled for a few minutes by a girl on a warpath, who, as he soon learned, has super strength regardless of what she's like when less determined, the changeling noticed his arm had stopped trying to exit the socket. He took this to mean they had stopped, and looked around. Raven had stopped in front of a clothing outlet, and was staring at the manikins in the display window. "Everything OK, Rae?"

She shook her head. "Look at me, B-Garfield." He did so eagerly, and she smacked him lightly in rebuke. "Look, don't ogle. What do you see?"

"The girl I love."

She blushed, but pressed on. "Spare me the fluff. Now compare me to the manikins in that display. Notice any differences?"

"You aren't made of plastic?"

"Any differences about our clothes?"

"Uhhh…" A droplet of drool threatened to drip out of the side of Beast Boy/Garfield's mouth. Raven firmly closed it.

"If you want to catch flies, turn into a frog. The difference is that they're wearing far more colorful clothes than I am. I mean, look at me!" He decided not to this time, fearing another love slap. "For all intents and purposes, I'm currently one hundred percent human, but from my outfit you'd think I'm still the gloomy, creepy half-demon-"

"Is that how you really see yourself, Rae?"

"It's how I am, how I normally have to be," she replied matter-of-factly. "I don't want to be that person when I don't have to be her."

"Well then," he smiled, "who would you like to be?"

AFTERTHEDATEAFTERTHEDATEAFTERTHEDATEAFTERTHEDATEAFTERTHEDATE

Beast Boy and Raven returned late, exhausted, filthy, and barely able to stand from laughing.

"I-I never even knew you c-could do that with a potato peeler," the empath gasped.

"I never saw so much upholstery in my life," the changeling replied. He turned to Raven. She was wearing tie-dyed jeans, a Hawaiian shirt, and the blue hoody tied around her neck. She looked like a chameleon on hallucinogens. "So, would you say we 'did something' today?"

"Oh, most definitely." The two reached the point where they'd have to go in opposite directions to get to their respective rooms. "Oh, and Gar?" Raven called, using her pet name for the green boy.

"Yeah?"

She smirked evilly. "Just wait until tomorrow."

His smile could've lit the Tower. He'd never seen this side of Raven: the inside, the person behind the monotone. She was the person he'd been trying to unearth for years, and that person was everything he'd dreamed of. As he entered his room, he couldn't help but do a victory dance.

Raven felt truly free for the first time ever. 'Is this what it's going to be like when I get all the Moxen?' she wondered, 'so open, so rich?' She felt split: Wish she never regenerated her powers, or wish it to happen here and now so the last two Moxen could be collected post haste? She wasn't sure, and she honestly didn't care. She managed to resist the victory dance urge, but still had a smile on her face for the remainder of the night.

Cyborg, meanwhile, rocked back and forth in a fetal position on his table/bed, holding Rufus in a death grip with one hand and sucking the thumb of the other. On occasion, he mumbled to himself, "Change the meat back, Mommy. Change the meat back," then resumed his oscillation.

No one had noticed Raven's hair had started reddening.

ENDCHAPTEREIGHTEENENDCHAPTEREIGHTEENENDCHAPTEREIGHTEEN

Cliffie! Not a "lives hang in the balance" cliffie, but a cliffhanger nonetheless. Don't worry about Cyborg, he should be fine by tomorrow…I hope. As for what Beast Boy looked like with hologram rings active, just imagine him as your favorite human-colored bishounen (pretty boy) version of him. Those not attracted to men, just go with how you think he'd look. I like to leave at least a few details up to readers' imaginations. Now then, review, lest I turn _your_ meat into tofu (or, for vegetarians, vice versa!)


	19. Untap, Upkeep, Draw

Let's see now. As of 9:32 AM, July 12, Chapter 18 got 56 views and 7 reviews. You all know what that means: 49 people get their food turned into tofu or meat, depending on what it isn't. Pentagram?

Pentagram: You got it, boss. (Casts spell) It is done.

Excellent. Now then, enough out-of-story magic, let's get back to my literary wizardry (or 'litzerdry' as I like to call it.)

DISCLAIMER: I don't own Teen Titans, Magic: the Gathering, Homestar Runner, the Addams Family, or any laws of cartoon physics. I also don't own Momir Vig, Simic Visionary. (sobs) Oh, Momir, I pine for you!

BETWEENBROWNANDPURPLEISREDBETWEENBROWNANDPURPLEISRED

The night of Raven and Beast Boy's first date, no one noticed Raven's hair had started reddening. Two fluff-filled days afterward, however the changes were far more dramatic.

Raven herself was the first to notice these changes. As she dragged herself from her room to the nearby bathroom, she thought the strands of hair falling into her face seemed off. When she entered the lavatory, her reflection made it seem as though the mirror needed its color adjusted. Snapping awake, she rushed to the mirror, to confirm what she saw. Her head resembled a half-eaten apple. Raven's hair was practically crimson, while her skin tone had paled to an almost albino hue. She summed up the situation and her reaction to it in a single syllable. "Crap."

During breakfast that day, she ate with the hood of her cape up, even though she was wearing casual clothes with it. Everyone noticed, but Cyborg was the first to express concern. "Uh, Raven?" he asked, "You feelin' OK?"

"Fine," she replied, just a bit too quickly. "I, er, my head just feels a little cold, that's all."

The other Titans looked at each other uncertainly, then uneasily resumed their morning calorie consumption. Beast Boy merely poked his oatmeal repeatedly with his spoon.

After breakfast, Raven sidled up to Starfire and whispered, "Starfire, can we talk?"

"Cer-" the princess began, at her usual cheerful volume. After a quick shushing, she restarted, more quietly. "Certainly, friend. What is it you need to discuss?"

"Wait in your room, I'll talk to you there." Noting Starfire's uncertainty, Raven decided to employ a tactic she dreaded: appeal to Star's love of all Earth female customs. "It'll be 'girl talk.'"

The Tamaranean barely suppressed a happy sound, and practically broke the sound barrier in her rush to her room.

Watching this spectacle, Raven put her hand to her concealed forehead and sighed. "What have I gotten myself into?"

STARFIRESROOMSTARFIRESROOMSTARFIRESROOMSTARFIRESROOMSTARFIRESROOM

When Raven entered the dreaded domain of her cheerful friend, said friend was almost quivering with delighted anticipation. Upon seeing her friend enter, Starfire nearly pounced on her and began spewing words. "Hello, sole female friend excepting Bumblebee! What is it you wish to discuss during this 'girl talk'?"

"Well-"

"Is it perhaps related to the Tlem'gark I gave you that you insisted was not at all related to Beast Boy?"

"Actually-"

"Though your recent expressions of great joy around him seem to indicate otherwise. Or perhaps-"

"STARFIRE!" Raven shouted, desperate for a word in edgewise. "Let me explain!"

Starfire covered her mouth in embarrassment. "I apologize, Raven. Please begin."

The empath sighed as both girls sat on Starfire's bed. "Sorry, Star. Anyway, I have a big problem." Starfire opened her mouth to try and guess Raven's problem, but was silenced with a meaningful glare. "You know my powers were exhausted after I used the Mox Jet."

"And you explained they would regenerate within a single Earth week." Starfire added, finding it difficult to remain silent during 'girl talk.'

"Yes, well, I'm kind of ahead of schedule." With that, she brought down the hood she'd been wearing since breakfast. Starfire gazed upon her friend's contrasting visage. "I know," said Raven, "it's kind of a shock."

Starfire's look of awe shifted to one of delight. "Friend Raven, I simply must, as you say, 'do your hair'!"

"What?" The recovering half-demon had been expecting momentary shock, but desire for a makeover? 'It's Starfire we're talking about,' commented her Rude aspect, 'I ain't surprised.'

"This pigmentation is simply gorgeous! I must experiment with its arrangement!" continued the adoring alien. Her hands reached for a comb and, most ominous of all, her massive collection of Earth hair accessories.

"Starfire!" cried a desperate Raven, "I didn't come here for a makeover, I came for advice!"

The princess stopped leaning towards the hapless telekinetic, but still held the comb in an unsettlingly predatory way. "Very well, friend. On what is the situation you wish me to advise you?"

"Well…" Unfortunately, Beast Boy and Raven had agreed to keep their relationship a secret from the others, and their teammates were still in the dark. "It's about me and…Beast Boy."

Starfire leaned in close. "Has friend Beast Boy impregnated you?"

"WHAT?" The shock was so great, a few wisps of dark energy managed to form around Starfire and shove her back a little. "Gar and I haven't done anything even remotely close to that! We've both agreed to at least wait until…" Raven's words caught up with her. "Oh Azar, I just admitted we're going out, didn't I?"

Starfire nodded. "You also referred to Beast Boy as 'Gar.' This is, perhaps, a pet name for him?"

Raven blushed, making her skin match her hair very nicely. "Yeah. The problem is, I feel so free emotionally around him anymore, but my powers are coming back really quickly."

"And with your powers driven by emotion, it would unsafe for you to be near friend Beast Boy, at the risk of unintentionally harming him."

"Exactly. If I want to enjoy time with the guy I, well, love, I risk killing him. If I avoid him, he'll think something's wrong, our relationship will deteriorate, and then we'll both be miserable. So what do I do?" Starfire looked at her friend worriedly during the rant. "What?" Raven asked.

"Friend Raven," Starfire said cautiously, "it would be easier for me to contemplate your situation if you were not pacing-"

"I pace when I'm frustrated, Star. No offense, but deal with it."

"It is not the pacing itself that disturbs me, Raven. It is that you are doing it on the ceiling."

Raven looked down…er, up. Then, as per the Fudd-Coyote Principle of Gravitational Uncertainty (You don't fall until you realize you should be falling.) she dropped off the ceiling. "Ow!" She rubbed her side. "Stupid fluctuating powers…" The sorceress's gaze snapped to Starfire. "Well? I'm off the ceiling. Get contemplating!"

The orange girl considered her friend's problem at great length. Finally, she came to a realization. "Friend, I feel that the best course of action is to…"

"To what?"

"Pardon?"

Raven's brow furrowed. "Starfire, you just trailed off after saying 'the best course of action is to'. That doesn't help me."

"Did I?" asked the alien. "I apologize most sincerely. As I was saying, it would be best if you…"

RAVENSROOMRAVENSROOMRAVENSROOMRAVENSROOMRAVENSROOM

Beast Boy nervously knocked on Raven's door. She never _invited_ him to her room. Until now, she'd either forbidden access or offered him an unwritten open-door policy. Furthermore, the note he found in the fridge, embedded in the tofu (Raven had no delusions about where Beast Boy was most likely to find something.) said she _needed_ to talk with him. It was never a good thing when one's girlfriend said she _needed_ to talk to one.

The door opened with its usual pneumatic hiss. It was darker than usual inside "Come in." called Raven, her face lost in the shadows.

Entering, Beast Boy brandished the slightly soy-smelling message. "Raven, why'd you say you needed to talk to me?"

"Well Beast Boy, I've been thinking and-"

"You want to break up with me?" The expression on the changeling's face could give any kicked puppy a run for its money in the betrayed trust and affection departments. "But I thought-"

Raven commanded, "Beast Boy, stop." He stopped. "Don't jump to conclusions," she chastised, "you remember what happened when you kept doing that during the whole Jet thing." There was a dark chuckle from her trunk, which stopped promptly when she kicked it. "Anyway, I still love you, I just wanted to let you know something."

The shapeshifter breathed a huge sigh of relief. "OK. I was worried there for a second."

Raven smiled. "It's nice to know you care so much. Anyway, this isn't where I want to talk to you."

"Where then? The roof?"

She shook her head, then lifted her hand mirror. "In here." Before he could argue, she activated the mirror, and the resulting dark cortex pulled both teens into Raven's mind.

INNEVERMOREINNEVERMOREINNEVERMOREINNEVERMOREINNEVERMORE

Raven came to a graceful landing on one of the floating rock-thoughts in her head. Beast Boy's entry wasn't quite as graceful, though he did manage to strike the manifestation with his entire face at the same time. After he pulled himself up, the changeling asked. "So, aside from free rhinoplasty, why'd you bring me in here? You hate it when I'm in your mind."

"We wanted to talk to you," said an authoritative voice. Paths of the floating psuedostones assembled themselves into paths, all of them intersecting on the chunk of mental stone Raven and Beast Boy stood on. The speaker, clad in leotard, glasses, yellow cape, and a perfect copy of Raven's physical form, approached calmly.

"It took a while, but Raven was convinced." This Raven wore a brown cloak and was unbespectacled, but seemed even more serene than the yellow-bearing one next to her.

"Yup, the girl can be more hardheaded than even you, Green Bean." This Raven was nonchalantly twisting a pinky in her ear. Extracting it, she examined the residue and wiped it on her orange cape. Raven avoided Beast Boy's gaze when he raised an inquisitive eyebrow.

"Humph." That was all an all too familiar Raven uttered as she stamped across her bridge, four eyes ablaze.

Beast Boy turned to Raven, astonished. "You let out Rage for this?"

"After we took out Big Bad Dad, Ragey Wagey ain't so nasty," bubbled another familiar Raven. Happy skipped down the path from her realm, pink cape swaying behind her. "Oh, and BB? Great plastic surgery joke."

"You can always rely on Garfield for a laugh or two," agreed yet another Raven. Her purple cape trailed behind her like a severely truncated bridal train, and she gazed at Beast Boy flirtatiously the entire way. He found himself blushing furiously.

"S-stop it. You're embarrassing him," begged Timid, her gray cloak wrapped around her like a security blanket. She blushed as well. "And me…"

"Please, you're always embarrassed. You gotta take life by the throat, girl! Assert yourself!" Brave proudly barked such motivation at her more cautious counterpart, green cloak streaming out in an unfelt wind.

Beast Boy looked around. "Are these all of your emotions?" Raven nodded.

"We prefer 'emotional avatars'," interjected the yellow-cloaked Raven.

"Or whatever. Knowledge also rules over political correctness." So said the now reclining orange Raven.

Raven rolled her eyes. "Let me introduce you to the emotions-" Knowledge cleared her throat meaningfully. "I mean, avatars you haven't met yet. You've just seen Knowledge in action. The orange-cloaked one is Rude."

"Or Lazy," Rude said, "I never got around to deciding which I like better."

"The one in brown is Wisdom," Raven continued.

Wisdom nodded. "Charmed."

"And the purple one is, well-"

"Affection," finished the violet-cloaked avatar. She cooed "_Cara mia,_" and swept towards Beast Boy, only to be stopped by Raven.

"Wait your turn," commanded the original.

Her purple doppleganger trudged her way back to her spot, muttering "see if I ever help you again…"

"So, why did bring me here?" asked an increasingly overwhelmed Beast Boy. The presence of nine Ravens gave him a combination of delight and deep apprehension. Would they all seek retribution for his countless pranks, or smooches?

"Well, it's this." Raven finally dropped her hood. After allowing Beast Boy to absorb her new color scheme, she resumed. "My powers are regenerating faster than I even imagined. I brought you here for sort of an 'Emotions' Last Meal.' Enjoy, Gar." With that, she vanished, leaving just the shapeshifter and her aspects.

SOMETIMEAFTERWARDSOMETIMEAFTERWARDSOMETIMEAFTERWARD

Beast Boy emerged from the mirror, staggering a bit and sporting a few lipstick marks. He recovered in time to realize Raven had become her usual unusual self. "Raven," he said. She turned to him mournfully. "Thank you."

"You didn't…?"

"Just made out. Mind you, with eight girls at once, that gets kind of complicated." He smiled, but noticed her melancholy expression. "Hey, let's check out the scroll. The sooner we get the other Moxen, the sooner we can go out again, right?"

She gave a hint of a smile. "Right." Extracting the scroll and the grumbling Mox Jet from her trunk, she applied one to the other. The eerie antilight faded from the central writing, leaving only black ink. To its right, red lettering erupted, glowing as though someone had painted the characters on with molten rock. Raven looked at the new writing carefully. "Let's see now. This says…"

ENDCHAPTERNINETEENENDCHAPTERNINETEENENDCHAPTERNINETEEN

Heh heh, the tradition of scroll reading cliffies continues! As always, virtupie is offered to those who correctly guess where the Mox Ruby is located. (In this case, ripe red cherry.) I'll see you next-

Pentagram: Uh, boss?

What? I'm trying to do the sendoff!

Pentagram: Well, about my spell at the start of the chapter…

What about it?

Pentagram: Er, well, I may have miswritten a rune or two in the spellform…

Meaning?

Pentagram: All the tofu turned into tofu, and all the meat turned into meat.

Oy. Well, we all make mistakes. Please review, everyone. That way I can send for a mystic runes tutorial DVD for Omnipotent McIlliterate here.

Pentagram: Sorry…


	20. The Fourth Reading

Wow. The big two-oh. Never thought I'd write anything this big. In the words of the great sage Coconut Fred, "Yay, me!" In other news, impressed kudos and two hot virtupies go to TAS14, who managed to correctly guess the site of the Mox Ruby two chapters before I revealed it. On a related note, Wind Lane owes me a port-o-john in my name.

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Teen Titans or Magic: the Gathering. I may own the name "Nameless Generic Racer GP," but feel free to use it in your own Titans fanfics. I definitely own a port-o-potty that is kept fresh by giant Breath Savers (which I don't own.)

WHENINDOUBTASKWHENINDOUBTASKWHENINDOUBTASKWHENINDOUBTASK

Raven extracted the scroll and the grumbling Mox Jet from her trunk, and then applied one to the other. The eerie antilight faded from the central writing, leaving only black ink. To its right, red lettering erupted, glowing as though someone had painted the characters on with molten rock. Raven looked at the new writing carefully. "Let's see now. This says…"

"Well?" Beast Boy asked eagerly.

Raven's face twisted into an unfamiliar expression of befuddlement. "I…don't know. I've never seen this language before."

The changeling looked over her shoulder to see the text that defeated Raven's prodigious linguistic skill. The enigmatic runic symbols seemed better suited for being chiseled into rock than written on the strange golden material of the scroll. "Well," he said conclusively, "you know what we need to do."

"Please tell me it doesn't involve mass numbers of rodents."

Beast Boy sighed. "Okay, Plan B: We ask the others if they recognize it."

The empath nodded. If it worked for the Sapphire, it should work for this one.

INTHEALLPURPOSEROOMINTHEALLPURPOSEROOMINTHEALLPURPOSEROOM

As luck would have it, the other Titans were all currently assembled in the main living roon, currently in its guise of Gamestation temple. Cyborg and Robin were neck and neck in a round of Nameless Generic Racer GP™, with much cheering by Starfire for both sides (but with a notable bias towards Robin.) As the black and green Titans entered the room, chants of "Kick the butt! Kick the butt!" could be heard over the game's blaring soundtrack as both teens jockied for position.

Just as Raven was about to pointedly clear her throat, Cyborg's racer managed to beat Robin's by a hair's width. "Booyah!" cried the victorious Victor, raising his controller in triumph. Drowning out Raven's attempt to talk, he swiftly turned to the defeated Robin and crowed "Who's the NGRGP champion, Boy Blunder? _Who's the champion?_"

The sound of Robin gritting his teeth filled the room. Years of Batman-taught self-restraint and –control fought a superiority complex the size of a minivan as the Titans' leader forced out a "Con…grat…u…la…tions…Cy." Veins began to bulge on his forehead as he quashed the urge to apply an EMP disk to the gloating mechanoman's forehead. Slowly, Robin turned, step by step, inch by inch. His fingers closed around Cy's neck and-

Robin's impromptu teammate throttling was interrupted by a certain Tamaranean gently kissing his forehead. All Titans present looked at her, astonished that she would breach years of obvious sexual tension so easily. Starfire blushed slightly and explained, "Friend Robin looked as though he was suffering from intense fury, or perhaps the constipation. I simply applied a Tamaranean pressure point technique to a location that would relieve either."

Cyborg raised a skeptical eyebrow. "Star, is there any Tamaranean custom that doesn't involve violence or kissing?"

The alien considered this question at length, and finally responded, "I believe there are a few where either is merely optional. However, a number often require both. Remember, friend Cyborg, as I taught you, the Tamaranean words for 'lover' and 'foe' are, in fact, identical." Those Titans not versed in the intricacies of the language of Tamaran continued to stare, more quizzically than before. "It is also the word for 'small lump of _phurloq_ dung.' The distinction is usually a matter of inflection."

"Hate to be a _phurloq_." Beast Boy muttered.

Raven jabbed him with her elbow, then turned back to the princess-turned-linguist. "Speaking of languages, Starfire, we need a translation for the new entry on the Mox Scroll." Handing Starfire the map, Raven asked, "Do you recognize the language the red entry is written in?"

The alien opened the scroll and scrutinized the new entry. Her eyes almost instantly lit up in recognition. "Why, these are Tamaranean war runes! They are used only in times of combat."

Cyborg examined the text. "Star, weren't these the symbols you used to teach me Tamaranean?"

Rubbing the back of her head nervously, Starfire replied, "Truthfully, we have been at war against one species or another for so long, all other Tamaranean alphabets have been lost to time."

"Could you translate them?" Raven requested.

"Certainly, friend." Starfire scanned the document a few times, held a brief whispered conversation with Robin for few difficult interpretations, then finally recited the resulting poem:

"_Red shines the next Mox_

_Waiting in stone chest._

_Sleeps it not in box_

_But statuary best._

_Once living was this caryatid_

_But be now stone true she._

_In these conditions you will find_

_The glowing Mox Ruby."_

Once the poem was completed, Beast Boy's eyes bugged out. Saying nothing, he turned and ran out of the room. The others watched in shock. Raven shook herself and hastily said, "Beast Boy and I need to have a private conversation," then followed suit.

As she rushed out, Starfire smiled and muttered, "Go friend. Go and comfort the one you love."

Unfortunately, Starfire's concept of muttering was somewhat inaccurate. Others would more correctly classify it as "loud, enthusiastic cheering." Due to this slight misunderstanding, Robin and Cyborg turned to Star inquisitively. The metal man breached the awkward silence the three had been sharing. "OK girl, spill: What do you know about Raven and BB, how long have you known, and why haven't you told us?"

Anxiety crept across the princess's face. "Oh _zlorqnofs_," she deadpanned.

BEASTBOYSROOMBEASTBOYSROOMBEASTBOYSROOMBEASTBOYSROOM

Raven approached Beast Boy's door hesitantly. Both had solved the puzzle of the poem within seconds of hearing it: The Mox Ruby lay within the petrified body of Terra. Who knew what kind of mental strain Beast Boy could be going through at this very moment? To be forced to choose between one's first love and one's current love…to Raven, the choice seemed nigh impossible. Suddenly, she erected herself, standing straight and firm. If anyone was to help Beast Boy with this decision, it should be the person who, hopefully, meant more to him than any other. She knocked on the door. "Beast Boy, can I come in?"

A muffled yelp on the other side of the door came before the reply. "J-just a sec, Rae!" A series of frantic, crashing sounds precluded the door opening. Beast Boy, nonchalance forced on his face, said conversationally, "What's up?"

Raven's eyes narrowed, and she entered his quarters. "Don't pretend nothing's wrong, Gar. I can only imagine how this is making you feel."

"Please, I'm fine. You know I'm over Terra." He swept her into a hug from behind. "What makes you think different?"

Phasing through the affectionate embrace, Raven picked up a photo that was lying on the lower bunk. "This." The photo was at a carnival. Beast Boy and Terra, arm in arm, looking like any typical lovestruck teenage couple. (Aside from the geokinesis, green skin, and mutable DNA, of course.) Raven lifted several photo albums out from under the bed mentally, both to be able to flip through them all at once, and because she didn't trust any dark, unattended portion of Beast Boy's room. As page after page of captured memories turned before her, an obvious pattern emerged. "Beast Boy," she started, "you've been looking through all your old pictures of Terra. Dwelling on the past." She put the albums down and looked him in the eyes, her own expressing the compassion she forbade from her face. "No amount of reminiscing will bring her back. She betrayed us. You can't-"

Her words were interrupted by a kiss. Beast Boy watched over his shoulder as the albums were folded, spindled, and mutilated by Raven's surprise and joy. He pulled back, and told her, "I know. Terra will always have a place in my heart, but you are the person I love, Raven."

"Then, why-?"

"I was just saying goodbye." He gestured behind her, and she turned to behold the wrecked photographs.

Gasping, she said, "You didn't have to do that."

Beast Boy shrugged. "I wanted to. Now what do you say we go get the next Mox?"

Raven nodded, but held up a finger. (A/N: The index finger, you sillies!) "Just one thing before we do. That whole 'place in my heart' speech, where'd that come from?"

Beast Boy smiled and rubbed the back of his head. "I heard it that time Robin had the flu and Star made me watch soap operas with her."

Raven gave a ghost of a smile. "I was worried for a second. I thought you were actually becoming articulate." She went back to the doorway, turned, and said, "Come on, the others are probably waiting for us."

"Be there in a second." As Raven walked down the hall, Beast Boy whipped out his dictionary, flipped to 'articulate,' and read. A few moments later, he rushed out of the room, shouting "Hey!"

ENDCHAPTERTWENTYENDCHAPTERTWENTYENDCHAPTERTWENTYENDCHAPTERTWENTY

w00t! Twenty chapters, with tons o' fluff, action, humor, and actiony, fluffy humor! My thanks go to my loyal supporters, people who stumbled upon this fic by accident, and my muse, who constantly makes ideas percolate in the coffee machine that is my imagination. Don't worry, I'm not ending the fic here, I'm just spreading a few thank-yous on a momentous milestone. Please return the favor and review!

IMPORTANT NOTICE: OK, before everyone starts spamming me with flames along the lines of "OMGWTF, Terras nto rok nemore u n00b!1!11!one," I'd like to remind everyone that this is set _between_ seasons 4 and 5. From that chronological starting block, I'm allowed to deviate as far from canon as my little heart desires. Remember: Evey fanfiction is, at least slightly, an AU fic.


	21. Divide and Cliffhang

To the people who thought Beast Boy's goodbye to Terra was abrupt: Remember, it's been at least a few years since Terra's betrayal. Beast Boy's had plenty of time to go through denial, anger, acceptance, and whatever the other two stages of loss are. It might be hives and dry cough. Anyway, Raven's presence acted as a catalyst for this, so he was able to rebound relatively quickly. Don't worry, he still feels for Terra, as will be indicated soon.

That said, it's time for the Mox Ruby, and red mana means one thing: Lots of fight scenes!

DISCLAIMER: I don't own Teen Titans, Magic: the Gathering or Styrofoam. I also don't own the source of a certain battle cry used in this chapter. (See afternote.)

OUTNUMBEREDOUTGUNNEDOUTCRAZEDOUTNUMBEREDOUTGUNNEDOUTCRAZED

Raven's words, instructing Beast Boy on the futility of reminiscing on Terra, were interrupted by a kiss. Beast Boy watched over his shoulder as the albums were folded, spindled, and mutilated by her surprise and joy. He pulled back, and told her, "I know. Terra will always have a place in my heart, but you are the person I love, Raven."

"Then, why-?"

"I was just saying goodbye." He gestured behind her, and she turned to behold the wrecked photographs.

Gasping, she said, "You didn't have to do that."

Beast Boy shrugged. "I wanted to. Now what do you say we go get the next Mox?"

Raven nodded, but held up a finger. (A/N: The index finger, you sillies!) "Just one thing before we do. That whole 'place in my heart' speech, where'd that come from?"

Beast Boy smiled and rubbed the back of his head. "I heard it that time Robin had the flu and Star made me watch soap operas with her."

Raven gave a ghost of a smile. "I was worried for a second. I thought you were actually becoming articulate." She went back to the doorway, turned, and said, "Come on, the others are probably waiting for us."

"Be there in a second." As Raven walked down the hall, Beast Boy whipped out his dictionary, flipped to 'articulate,' and read. A few moments later, he rushed out of the room, shouting "Hey!"

MOUTHOFTHECAVERNMOUTHOFTHECAVERNMOUTHOFTHECAVERNMOUTHOFTHECAVERN

After Raven and Beast Boy happily argued the breadth of his vocabulary, the Titans set off for what had unofficially come to be known as Terra's Cave. However, the term 'cavern' would better describe what they entered. The narrow tunnel that had led to the subterranean alcove had been widened in to a series of grand chambers that housed several armies worth of humans, humanoids, and blatant nonhumans alike. The ones who had excavated these catacombs were still at it: dwarves with pickaxes and drills, green-skinned humanoids with rocks and hammers, even strange beasts that looked like the offspring of a jaguar and an alligator that spat explosive bursts of fire at the walls, leaving molten shrapnel in their wake. All could just be seen in the distance as the continued to expand beneath an unknowing city.

Within the areas they had already cleared, life thrived. More of the pumagators nosed about, barbarians sparred and drank, and all sorts of combat and carousal were taking place, with a population so large that the unknowing observer might think the inhabitants had lived here for centuries, if not millennia.

Starfire was first to recover, gasping with joy. "This greatly resembles the feast hall of the palace on Tamaran!" Her eyes misted over with nostalgia. "I can almost hear the gorka pipes…"

Cyborg nudged Beast Boy. "Hey, BB," he said, "I think I see your grandpa!" He pointed a metal finger at one of the green-skinned beings. With the skin coloration and pointy ears, combined with the baldness, warts and general decrepitude, they did indeed look like elder versions of the shapeshifter, albeit with noses a toucan would be proud of.

Raven set her mechanized friend straight. "They're goblins. They've practically evolved to destroy anything they get their hands on, and to be total annoyances." She paused, her gaze alternating between Beast Boy and the innumerable goblins in the grand area before the heroes.

Beast Boy's ire rose as this continued. "Hey, at least I don't have a banana sticking out of my face!"

"Uh, guys…" Robin began.

"We do know you're gonna go bald, you know," Cyborg noted.

"Hey! That was only one possible future." The changeling protectively put his hands to his scalp. "The fate of my hair is not set in stone!"

"Guys…"

Starfire joined the debate. "Friend Beast Boy shall lose his hair as he ages, but not to the extent that those creatures have." Beast Boy's face brightened in hope. "I would estimate only eighty percent of his scalp was hairless when I followed Warp to the cold, unpleasant future that will hopefully not take place." The shapeshifter's expression fell to remorse once more.

"Titans!" Robin called. The others finally paid attention to him. "Incoming!" Indeed, a swarm of the bald beings the other four had been discussing were charging towards them, grinning maniacally and brandishing unpleasant-looking chunks of metal.

As per the laws of narrative, someone, in this case Cyborg, looked at Robin and said, "Why didn't you say so?" After this nod to convention, the Titans assumed combat stances, prepared to plow through the charging green tide.

Plow they did. Starbolts sent a dozen goblins flying at a time, bones broken and limbs in disarray. Dark energy cleaved through the pests like a hot machete through Styrofoam. Sonic blasts literally made goblinoid heads explode from auditory abuse. Green cleaved through green as an elephant effortlessly charged through the ranks. Even a humble bo staff sent the creatures sprawling. Soon the Titans emerged virtually unscathed, an impressive pile of twitching and moaning corpses-to-be behind them.

Starfire nervously looked back at the heap of bodies. "Should we not feel guilt for ending so many lives?"

"They were just magical constructs, Star," Raven reassured the alien. To prove her point, the dying bodies quickly dissolved into a huge inferno, which in turn soon dissipated into nothingness. "See? Red mana losing focus."

"Aye," said an unfamiliar voice, "but we not be goin' tha' easily. Righ' boys?" The Titans turned to behold a significant number of bearded, axe-wielding figures before them. They would've been even more intimidating if they weren't each about three and a half feet tall.

Starfire crouched down to coo to one of them. "Oh, you are simply adorable! I must take you home and perform the overmaking apon you!"

The little man was rather unnerved, assuming this was some sort of bizarre big-folk torture method. He nervously swung his axe, and would've split open the princess's rib cage had Raven not pulled her back.

"Don't underestimate them," advised the empath. "These are dwarves. Six feet of skill and attitude concentrated into a body about half the size."

"More 'n six feet, missy," boasted the lead dwarf. His eyes narrowed. "Enough o' this jawin'! Attack!" With that cry, the dwarven army charged forth. Unlike the goblins before them, the dwarves had more to offer in battle than sheer numbers. Their use of tactics and terrain advantage enabled them to flank, surround, and separate each Titan.

Realizing the team was being split up, Robin called, "Star! Raven! Beast Boy! In the air, now!" as he parried a dwarven axe with his own Birdablade. (A/N: The sword he makes in "The End pt. 2 by connecting two Birdarangs.)

The three flying Titans tried to gain altitude, but each was met with a suddenly formed dwarven pyramid. The apex dwarf of each formation leapt on to a Titan, pestering (and, in Beast Boy's case, plucking) the flyer until he or she landed, even more distance put between the harassed hero/ine and any teammates.

(A/N: Warning: Lots of line breaks in quick succession coming up.)

ROBINSCURRENTLOCATIONROBINSCURRENTLOCATIONROBINSCURRENTLOCATION

Robin watched in horror as his teammates fell from the sky, more separated than ever. Before his guilt could really hit, however, he noticed that his adversaries had stopped their assault. Looking around, he saw that the dwarves he had been fighting were arranging themselves into a circle, with him at the center. He stayed strong, assuming a combat stance for whatever challenge came next.

A low chuckle came through Robin's feet rather than his ears. Two identical warriors, human height and sporting fur-lined samurai armor, approached the Boy Wonder, each on the periphery of his vision. The chuckler, whirling twin serrated blades, boomed, "We fight, Seitaro?"

His twin nodded, brandished his _naginata_, and replied, "Yes, Shujiro. We fight." With that, the two charged the ever-ready teen.

CYBORGSCURRENTLOCATIONCYBORGSCURRENTLOCATIONCYBORGSCURRENTLOCATION

Distracted by unleashing a technological arsenal on his diminutive adversaries, Cyborg hadn't noticed the other Titans were blocked off until it was too late to do anything. At first, he thought the circle of dwarves was being formed due to intimidation, since he'd whipped out his energy chainsaw. (See "Mother Mae-Eye") Soon, he realized he was mistaken, as a storm cloud manifested itself in the upper reaches of the chamber. Lightning flashed through the nebulous haze, then collected and struck at the point Cyborg had been a moment ago. He wasn't harmed, but was still shocked to see that a the bolt had apparently contained a living person.

Decidedly female, her armor seemed designed to titillate as well as it protected. The mechanoman was further surprised when, upon closer inspection, her iron gauntlets and boots were in fact growing out of her flesh, each melding with the other about the elbows and knees. He couldn't analyze her astonishing anatomy any further, though, because she gave a harsh battle cry and rushed towards him, electricity crackling across her metallic hands.

RAVENSLANDINGSITERAVENSLANDINGSITERAVENSLANDINGSITERAVENSLANDINGSITE

As she came to a harsh landing, a dwarf having unhooded and now attempting to decloak her, Raven muttered to herself, "Never before have I felt more hatred towards cheerleading," before telekinetically repelling her harasser. It was then she noticed a circle of dwarves forming around her. "What now?" she asked worriedly. Her answer was a piercing shriek from the upper reaches of the cavern. A blazing bird dove from there, thermally charged talons poised forward and aiming at the empath. Raven sighed. "I had to ask."

STARFIRESLANDINGSITESTARFIRESLANDINGSITESTARFIRESLANDINGSITE

After throwing off a dwarf who kept exclaiming, "Let's see who overmakes who!" Starfire noted the circle of the small humanoids surrounding her.

Looking around nervously, she saw one of them approach her, being treated almost reverentially by the others. "Who are you?" she asked.

The venerated dwarf sneered, flexing his joints with several audible pops. "I, missy, am mos' likely the las' thing ye'll ever see." With that, he drew a double-headed axe that was nearly as tall as he was, swung it speculatively, then, crying "_T'dr'duzk b'hazg t't!_" charged the alien.

BEASTBOYSLANDINGSITEBEASTBOYSLANDINGSITEBEASTBOYSLANDINGSITE

An incongruous green blue whale landed in the midst of a cookfire where a particularly interesting saga was reaching its climax. After shifting back to human form, Beast Boy frantically brushed off the embers that threatened to set his uniform, then noticed the circle of dwarves closing around him. What he didn't know was that this circle was somewhat wider than similar ones surrounding his friends, one of the reasons being that anyone who saw the changeling's signature Cetacean Slam move was always a little cautious afterward. The second reason made itself readily apparent as it burst out of a nearby rock outcropping.

The beast landed in the circle, much to relief of those near it. It was best described as muscular, carnivorous mix of ape and tortoise with a shell made out of cooling lava. Beast Boy could tell the substance was lava because several vents on the thing's back were still enthusiastically venting the stuff. Its mouth glowed with the volcanic fluid residing within. The changeling knew only one word could best describe his situation: "Dude…"

ENDCHAPTERTWENTYONEENDCHAPTERTWENTYONEENDCHAPTERTWENTYONE

That's right, folks! I just pulled a quintuple cliffhanger! Cybermuffins go to people who can guess any of the specified creatures that attack the Titans. You have seven opportunities: The first wave of goblins, the anonymous dwarves, and each Titan's personalized foe. Virtupie to the person who knows what Starfire's personal foe's battle cry means, and where it's from. Hope you enjoyed the action. Why not review and tell me how you felt? Online pastry is at stake!


	22. Behold the Lady

Huh. No one guessed what the creatures could be. I'll tell you the first two: The Titans first fought a wave each of Raging Goblins and Dwarven Grunts. I'm still offering muffiny goodness for those who can correctly guess individual opponents. On the other hand, kudos and virtupies go to spiritdragon42 and rewind gone nuts for correctly translating the dwarven battle cry. Now then, I believe I had five individual fight scenes to resolve?

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Magic: the Gathering, Teen Titans, the Discworld book series, Zero Wing, or any other trademarked intellectual properties referenced herein. Don't say I didn't warn ya.

YOUALWAYSHURTTHEONESYOULOVEYOUALWAYSHURTTHEONESYOULOVE

The beast landed in the empty circle circumscribed by dwarven warriors, much to relief of those near it. It was best described as muscular, carnivorous mix of ape and tortoise with a shell made out of cooling lava. Beast Boy could tell the substance was lava because several vents on the thing's back were still enthusiastically oozing the stuff. Its mouth glowed with the volcanic fluid residing within. The changeling knew only one word could best describe his situation: "Dude…"

The creature gave a thunderous roar and charged at the hapless shapeshifter, who barely managed to roll out of the way. Unfortunately, he wasn't able to fully escape harm. As Beast Boy moved to the raging beast's side, the vents on its back actually changed position and fired molten rock at him. Only by changing into a dragonfly did the changeling have enough agility to avoid the magma.

Landing at the thing's other flank, Beast Boy briefly resumed human form to taunt, "Time to fight fire with fire," and exert incredible mental effort. "Think big," he muttered, "think big…"

As the titanic monster turned to face its prey, it beheld a bizarre sight: Instead of the tasty morsel it had attempted to flash-broil, it beheld a near-perfect duplicate of itself. The only flaw was the copy's coloration. It was completely green. The circle widened further to make room for the two giants beginning their epic struggle. No one noticed the goblin in robes slipping his way through the crowd.

CYBORGSBATTLECIRCLECYBORGSBATTLECIRCLECYBORGSBATTLECIRCLE

Cyborg's opponent was merciless, hurling electrical energy with barely any pause for breath. It was all he could do to avoid the blasts. That she was, well, a she didn't help matters for the chivalrous hero.

"If we could just talk for a-" His latest attempt at diplomacy was cut short by another electrostatic bolt. "OK, then," he said, wide-eyed.

"Neurok scum!" the electromage spat, power crackling of her ferrous hands, "You and your words mean nothing to the truly strong. They are for weaklings and fools! Go back to your fish-head masters and tell them that!" She punctuated the bizarre insult with yet another flash of lightning.

Cyborg simply stood there, not even bothering to dodge the bolt. The energy surged around him, but quickly dissipated, leaving him unscratched. Raising a sonic cannon arm, he flatly stated, "Back at 'ya," and fired a blast that crackled with the electrical energy he'd been able to absorb from his foe's attack.

The enhanced sonic burst left the sorceress prostrate, groaning in pain and exhaustion. The dwarves attempted to swarm the victorious Titan, but were stopped with a meaningful glare and a shining energy cannon. Kneeling, he said to the half-iron woman, "Now can we talk?"

STARFIRESBATTLECIRCLESTARFIRESBATTLECIRCLESTARFIRESBATTLECIRCLE

The dwarves witnessing Starfire's fight agreed it was one for the ages. The dwarven champion and alien princess traded ferocious attacks, neither giving the slightest edge to the other. Starfire's power of flight was no tactical advantage, as the diminutive doyen could easily generate enough momentum for incredible leaps, usually while performing a lethal somersault with his axe tucked between his knees. The same axe proved durable enough to deflect Starbolts and even, on one memorable occasion, reflect Starfire's eye blasts into her chest.

As of now, both combatants were exhausted, each panting for breath and preparing for a final assault. Each charged, and after an explosion of green and crimson energy, the spectators beheld a perfect stalemate. The front blade of the champion's axe was caught firmly in Starfire's green-glowing hands. Both were standing firmly on the ground, soil extruding from under their feet, forced out from the incredible battle of strength.

"_Rutha klorbag,_" the Tamaranean growled.

"_Grr'dukk d'buzh'drak,_" the dwarf returned.

Then, the hands stopped glowing, the axe fell to the ground, and both combatants followed suit.

ROBINSBATTLECIRCLEROBINSBATTLECIRCLEROBINSBATTLECIRCLEROBINSBATTLECIRCLE

This battle, meanwhile, was still in the most active stages. Robin, wielding the Birdablade in one hand and a partially extended bo staff in the other, was managing to hold his own against the twin samurai. Swords clashed against sword, halberd was sideswiped by staff, but Robin knew he'd reach his limit soon and would have to do something soon or put his life in his foes' hands.

The skinny hero dove between one of the samurais' legs, avoiding the three blades that crashed down where he just recently stood. As his adversary turned, the Boy Wonder stowed his staff and threw a smoke bomb. While the twins searched for him on the ground, he dove screaming from above. Grinning, the brothers pointed their blades upward, intent on letting gravity skewer the teen. Robin, however, had planned for this, and threw two more projectiles: An electrodisk followed by a Birdarang. As the latter struck the former, it unleashed a potent charge that scintillated down the lightning rod-like weaponry and through the bodies of their wielders. The two collapsed, singed and smoking. As Robin watched, they dissolved into scalding, sulfuric vapor.

"Well," the Boy Wonder said breathlessly, "that should take care of that."

"Not quite." Robin knew that, unlike in a certain website, on the field of battle an unexpected reply was a bad thing. Turning to see his responder, the Titan leader beheld a formidable looking man, shirtless and rough hewn. He wielded what appeared to be a spiked log, connected to a number of chains he grasped firmly, and several spears protruded from his saddlebags. Did I mention he was astride a yak? He was astride a yak. It snorted at Robin, musing his hair. "I am Godo," said the yak-rider, "and you have defeated my most trusted lieutenants. Do you know what I do to those who defeat my champions?"

Robin gulped and thought, 'I think I liked it better when I was insane.'

RAVENSBATTLECIRCLERAVENSBATTLECIRCLERAVENSBATTLECIRCLE

Raven was getting frustrated, a common attitude when fighting something that can resurrect itself. First, it kept blocking her when she tried to escape from the ring of dwarves Then the blazing bird kept exploding into a storm of pyrotechnic plumage, then restoring itself to avian form. While Raven could shield herself from such explosive onslaughts with little effort, the fact that the thing kept exploding or reforming every time she tried to use her powers on it was rather frustrating.

Her annoyance was nearly reaching levels she thought only Beast Boy could achieve when a voice from the circle drew both her and the bird's attention. "Here, Sparkly!" the gnarly sound rang out, "Be a good boy, Sparkly, come to Daddy!"

The phoenix responded to this by swooping to the source of the voice, a goblin in robes several sizes to large for it, and exploding. Much to Raven's surprise, the goblin returned from death before his pet could, and snatched at a spot that was, unbeknownst to the empath, at the exact center of the feathery nimbus. All of the pieces of the bird were sucked into a circle roughly the size of the goblin's hand. Said goblin then leapt up and down trying to garner Raven's attention, shouting "Miss! 'Scuze me, Miss!"

Half driven by curiosity, half because the creature bore a more than passing resemblance to Beast Boy, especially when trying to get Raven to notice him, she swooped to the ground. "What?"

"Da Lady wants ta see ya, Miss!" the goblin spouted, as though desperate t get out the words before they escaped his brain. "Not just you, Miss! Yer boyfriend too, Miss!"

The empath sighed, astonished that this thing had managed to annoy her even faster than either Beast Boy or its pet. "Call me Raven, and don't do it every sentence. Who are you, anyway?"

The goblin puffed up what chest it had and said proudly, "I'm Squee! Top guy in cave! Lady's right-hand goblin! Lady made Squee immortal, 'cuz everyone likes ta kill Squee after I gives 'em orders. Ya can kill me after this if ya want, Miss Raven."

"Tempting as that sounds, I'll pass. So how do we get to Beast Boy?" Noting the more-clueless-than-usual expression on Squee, she clarified. "My boyfriend?"

"No problem, Miss Raven! Everybody listen ta Squee!" With that, he strode through the packed crowd of dwarves, followed by the scattered camps of all species, providing a wake for Raven and pausing only once or twice to magically recuperate from an axe to the head.

Along the way, Raven asked a question that had been niggling her. "Who is the Lady?"

Squee stopped and turned in shock. "Everyone knows da Lady! She's da one who made us! She's da boss, in charge a' da whole show!"

It clicked for Raven. "The Mox Ruby?"

Squee resumed pressing through the crowd, which had become packed dwarf once more. "She likes ta be called da Lady. Ya know why." He stopped, pushed a dwarf aside, and was rewarded with a jet of magma to the face.

Raven could see the spectacle over the scalded goblin. Two gigantic entities were repeatedly charging one another, spraying lava on each other and everywhere else. However, that all became background when she realized a very important detail: One of the creatures was green. "BEAST BOY!" she called. The green monster turned, and its distraction gave the red and blue one an opening to strike with its forepaw. The empath watched horrified as the green beast, changing in midair to a familiar shapeshifter, sailed through the air.

"I got 'im!" cried a newly healed Squee. Climbing atop the forest of dwarven helmets, the goblin dashed across the irritated warriors to make a diving catch. Since Beast Boy, even in human form, was significantly heavier than even the best-fed goblin, this resulted in a bodypile consisting of Beast Boy, Squee, and several very irritated dwarves.

By the time Raven was able to squeeze, hover, and glare her way to the landing site, Beast Boy was sitting up, watching in horrified fascination as minced goblin flesh and fabric reassembled itself into Squee. Noticing the empath's entrance, the shapeshifter lit up. "Raven!" he cried happily, and hugged her, creating a hint of smile on her lips. Releasing her, Beast Boy assumed a more serious expression and asked Raven, "OK, three things: Who's the living jigsaw puzzle, where's everyone else, and what happened to the giant oozing-lava thing?"

"Squee can answer!" cried the self-important goblin. "Squee is immortal, 'cuz da Lady made Squee her messenger and when Squee gives orders, everyone wants ta kill Squee."

"The Lady?" Beast Boy asked.

"The Ruby," clarified Raven.

"As Squee was saying," huffed their guide. "Yer friends are OK. De Lady don't want 'em ta die. And big ol' lava thing got sent back to sleep by Lady 'cuz Squee found green guy. And now that Squee gots green guy and Miss Raven, we all go to see da Lady!" With that, the goblin pressed through the crowd once more, apparently towards the Mox Ruby.

As the two Titans followed the overdressed goblin, Beast Boy muttered, "How come you're 'Miss Raven' and I'm 'green guy'?"

"Because," Raven responded, "the Ruby probably knows what would happen if it disrespected me. You it isn't too worried about."

Beast Boy humphed, but good naturedly. "At least we're all safe."

"Quit flirtin' and follow Squee!" called their guide. Blushing slightly, both teens quickened their pace.

CHAMBEROFTHELADYCHAMBEROFTHELADYCHAMBEROFTHELADYCHAMBEROFTHELADY

The site of Terra's petrification had remained unchanged. The plaque left there by the Titans was still in place, the igneous stone from the barely averted eruption still laid there, undisturbed. Even Terra's statue had the same expression of determination, laced with fear. The only noticeable difference was that a red glow was emanating from Terra's chest.

Bowing, Squee declared, "Da Lady," and exited. Beast Boy and Raven entered hesitantly, both suddenly recalling light and dark times with their calcified companion.

As the two came to the podium Terra's body stood apon, the glow from her chest intensified. Red lines of energy snaked across the stone body, tracing out joints and chi lines. Terra's eyes filled with a crimson glow, and her body sat down in lotus position. "Hello Raven, Beast Boy." It was her voice.

Beast Boy was wide-eyed. Tears were forming, and his heart ached. "Terra…" he whispered. Raven looked at him, insecurity permeating her own heart.

"Beast Boy," snapped the statue, "I am not Terra. This is her body, her voice, but it is not her soul."

"Where-" began the shapeshifter.

"Do you know if she believed in reincarnation?" asked the Ruby. Beast Boy shrugged. "Well, reincarnation believes in her." The statue turned to Raven. "You wish to extract me, yes?"

"O-of course," stuttered Raven, who was still a little shocked. "But why?"

"Why what?"

"Why are you making this so easy after all that resistance? If you were going to give yourself up, why bother with the army, the individual fights? Why send your lackey to make sure only Beast Boy and I got here?"

"Oh, that," the Ruby said casually.

"Yeah," replied the changeling, finding solace in sarcasm, "that."

"Where to begin? Ever since you entered this world, Raven, I've known about you. Don't forget, the chakra you wear is my Azarathi cousin. I've watched as you've developed friendships, fought evil within and without, even confronted the most intimidating force you've known in your life, your father. Every episode, I've been watching. I couldn't help but notice your growing favoring of Beast Boy, in and out of combat. After the Malchior incident, after Terra, it seemed to make perfect sense: You two perfectly compliment each other."

"Besides sounding vaguely creepy, how is this answering my questions?"

"I'm getting to that. As you know, I contain and command red magic, the magic of emotion, of passion. When Pentagram gave you the Mox Scroll, I knew you'd come for me eventually, so I began to plan. I'd been inside Terra even since she was petrified, drawn by the immense geokinetic power she used in her final moments. From here, I could create a stronghold that could withstand and waylay the other Titans, ensuring that you two would arrive in my chamber and no others. And then, my plan could come to fruition."

Raven frowned skeptically, "Whar does that entail?"

The statue stood once more. "The destruction of those who broke you hearts. I knew Raven would have to destroy Malchior's tome to get the Mox Jet. Now the same thing must take place."

Raven's eyes widened. "I have to destroy Terra's statue?"

Beast Boy turned to Raven, his face bearing a horrified look. "No," he said, "I do."

ENDCHAPTERTWENTYTWOENDCHAPTERTWENTYTWOENDCHAPTERTWENTYTWO

Bum, bum, BUM! That's right, folks! Squee and Terra in one chapter! And they said it couldn't be done! Anyway, you have one last chance to name each Titan's personal red foe, though I made it kind of obvious in a few cases. Review for cybermuffins, for fun, or for great justice.

(I thought I said no more All Your Base references! Who put that in there?)


	23. Goodbye, Ruby Terra

Hello again! Again, no one was willing to hazard a guess as to the identities of the red creatures. I'll list them in the endnote, in case anyone cares. Anyway, I should warn everyone, this chapter does have character "death" and very mild profanity. It also has unhealthy levels of Japanese horseradish, but we'll get to that later. Disclaimer time!

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Teen Titans, Magic: the Gathering, or, despite frequent rumors to the contrary, giant flaming effigies of ffnet writers who don't follow the basics of capitalization and grammar. I do have a few of those writers laboring in my n-dimensional sinuses, but no one misses them. (Just kidding…maybe)

AHEAVYHEARTACLENCHEDFISTAHEAVYHEARTACLENCHEDFISTAHEAVYHEARTACLENCHEDFIST

"As you know," explained the Mox Ruby from the animated remnants of Terra, "I contain and command red magic, the magic of emotion, of passion. When Pentagram gave you the Mox Scroll, I knew you'd come for me eventually, so I began to plan. I'd been inside Terra even since she was petrified, drawn by the immense geokinetic power she used in her final moments. From here, I could create a stronghold that could withstand and waylay the other Titans, ensuring that you two would arrive in my chamber and no others. And then, my plan could come to fruition."

Raven frowned skeptically, "What does that entail?"

The statue stood once more. "The destruction of those who broke you hearts. I knew Raven would have to destroy Malchior's tome to get the Mox Jet. Now the same thing must take place."

Raven's eyes widened. "I have to destroy Terra's statue?"

Beast Boy turned to Raven, his face bearing a horrified look. "No," he said, "I do."

Terra's head nodded. "Exactly. Once that is done, none will be able to interfere with your mutual happiness and joy." Her mouth split in a wide, stony grin.

"But it's not that simple!" cried the anguished shapeshifter. "Terra wasn't some random villain! She was my friend, my," he stifled a sob, "my first love."

The statue wore a look of confusion. "But she deceived you. Betrayed you. Surely you-"

"She redeemed herself in the end!" Beast Boy shouted. Kneeling, he held his head is his hands. "Do you think you're making this any easier? Using her voice? Wearing her face? It's like watching Terra sacrifice herself for us all over again."

Raven knelt down to console him. Even as he wrapped his arms around her, she turned to the jewel. "Terra and I might not have always gotten along, but even I came to trust her."

"Ah," interjected the Ruby, "but Malchior-"

Raven quickly cut it off. "Malchior never made amends for his deception. He didn't become one of us. You're asking Beast Boy to destroy what's left of one of the few people to ever look beyond the green skin, the goofy façade."

The point seemed to have finally penetrated both the literal and figurative rock-hard skulls of the Ruby. "I see…" it said, worry and embarrassment populating its features. "I'm going to have to think about this." With that, the red glow faded from the statue, which resumed Terra's final pose.

BACKWITHTHEOTHERTITANSBACKWITHTHEOTHERTITANSBACKWITHTHEOTHERTITANS

A grand banquet table stood in the center of the grand chamber; aged wood creaking under the weight of the roasted pigs, broiled kavu, and other assorted charred carcasses. Dwarves, humans, lizardfolk, minotaurs, even goblins were seated, and at the head of the table, a rugged, seemingly Japanese man rose and raised his flagon of whatever fermentables the squatters had managed to find underground.

"A toast!" he called, "to honor the passing of my old champions, and the finding of my new one! To Yamazaki Seitaro and Shujiro! To Robin, the Boy Wonder!"

"To the Brothers! To Robin!" chorused about the table, accompanied with hearty quaffs from the flagons.

"Hear, hear!" called two voices near the head of the table. Starfire and her opponent-turned-friend, who she now knew as Balthor, toasted one another's glasses and drank heartily. Much to the dwarf's surprise and pleasure, the slim Tamaranean managed to empty her flask before he did. Turning to Robin, he said jovially, "Say, champion boy. Ye would'n happen ta have a claim on this lass, would ye? She'd make any dwarf a fine wife. A wee bit tall, maybae, but fine indeed."

Robin's response was interrupted by a tremendous belch that received a fair amount of applause from the table, many of those seated connoisseurs of the more amusing bodily noises and functions. "Excuse me," said an embarrassed Starfire, "I am unaccustomed to this beverage." She turned to the barbarian sitting at the head of the table. "Pardon me, Warlord Godo, but do you have any mustard?"

The bandit chief smiled, and replied, "Mustard? Hah, yes, the short ones have told of the stuff. I have something far better." With that, he reached into a pouch at his side, his hand returning with something wrapped in rice paper. He passed it to Starfire. "Try a bit."

The alien unwrapped a bit, revealing a light green paste. Raising a skeptical eyebrow, she rubbed a bit of with her forefinger, and then licked it. Eyes widening in ecstasy, she cried, "What is this wondrous substance? It is as though Blorthog is being held within my mouth, and all have come to celebrate!"

Laughing heartily, Godo replied, "That, fair maiden, is wasabi. Far more potent than any yellow goo." He reached for the package, but Starfire pulled it towards her and growled threateningly, eyes blazing. Retracting his hand, the warlord smiled more uncertainly, then whispered to Robin, "Honorable champion, if she is indeed your woman, I do not recommend displeasing her."

Nodding knowingly, Robin responded, "Trust me, I'm well aware," and watched as Starfire consumed the remainder of the paste in a single gulp, rising into the air with unmitigated glee.

BACKTOTHEMAINSTORYBACKTOTHEMAINSTORYBACKTOTHEMAINSTORY

After a few minutes, the red energy returned to the statue, who said, "After considering your history with Terra, I realize I might have been somewhat insensitive before."

"No, really," drawled Raven.

"Yes," replied an oblivious Ruby, "And for that, I apologize. I realize simply asking someone to destroy the monument to one of their friends is a terrible thing."

"Well," Beast Boy offered, "we discussed a few things, and Raven and I came to an agreement."

"Beast Boy and I agreed that he should be the one to extract you from Terra's statue," Raven finished.

"Really?" asked a disconcerted Ruby. "What happened to 'Terra was our friend, how could you ask this of us?' "

"Terra's been gone for a long time," explained the changeling. "I've said goodbye, but I haven't done it in person. This way, I'll get real closure."

The Ruby rarely used its incredible intelligence, but even it noticed the inconsistency in Beast Boy's otherwise moving speech. "Raven told you the last sentence, didn't she?"

Caught and flustered, the green teen rallied his only defense. "Is that really important right now?" Having silenced the sniggers from the two feminoids, (A/N: female-shaped beings) Beast Boy then assumed the form of a gorilla, and threw a tremendous punch at the statue.

It effortlessly caught the simian fist, with nary a hairline crack in its own structure. Beast Boy returned to human form, and, shaking feeling back into his hand, gave the Ruby a look of annoyed incomprehension. Frowning, the Ruby explained his unspoken question. "Beast Boy, I want you to do this in human form."

"Why? I don't think I can even break the statue unless I turn into something really strong."

"That isn't the point. I can make the statue as hard or soft as I wish. The point is, I don't want you hiding behind a simpler mind while you're doing this. I want to know Garfield Logan, _Homo sapiens panmorphia_, is the one doing this, not Beast Boy directing the mind of a gorilla or an ox." (A/N: _Homo sapiens panmorphia_: Thinking man of all shapes)

The changeling sighed, and looked to Raven. "What?" she asked, after he'd been looking at her for slightly longer than she was comfortable with.

He smiled, not his usual toothy beaming, but a subdued grin. "Just reminding myself why I'm doing this."

With that, he approached the statue, which resumed the pose it had taken upon its petrification. The only evidence of magical intervention was the red glow still emanating from Terra's chest. Beast Boy put his arm around the stone neck, and placed his forehead against the statue's. "I'll never forget you, Terra. Thank you, and goodbye." With his other hand, he delivered the first punch, cracking the torso considerably. Pulling himself erect, the shifter delivered another blow, then another, cracking and chipping away more and more stone. Red light flooded out from the cracks. Finally, with a resounding double-handed strike, the stone gave way fully, Terra's arms and head dropping away and shattering on the floor.

In the exposed portion of the statue, where a geokinetic girl's heart once lay, sat the Mox Ruby. Similar in shape to the Jet, but more faceted, in a thicker gold frame, and red, of course, for a moment it didn't seem worth the sacrifice.

_You did the right thing, Garfield,_ it assured him, then fell silent. The psychic voice, at once as kindhearted as a puppy and as intense as a thunderstorm, washed over the changeling with little noticeable reaction.

Plucking the gem from the remnants of the statue, Beast Boy wordlessly handed it to Raven, then embraced her, and finally allowed the tears to come out. She stood solidly, holding him steady as a few tears of her own silently ran down her cheeks. Streams of gravel flowed with the empath's tears as Terra's trunk quietly dissolved.

WITHCYBORGWITHCYBORGWITHCYBORGWITHCYBORGWITHCYBORGWITHCYBORG

Weepingly, the sorceress finished her story. "So, you see, ever since then, I've been trapped in this strange world where everyone's made entirely of flesh and they all treats me like some sort of freak, and, and…" She collapsed into sobs, the tears crackling with static charge. Turning to the cybernetic teen, she continued. "At least you knew what it was like to be all flesh, before being turned into something even you think of as a freak."

Cyborg nodded sympathetically. "At least you felt like you belonged, had others that were part metal." Both were sitting some distance from the banquet, still at the point where they had fought. "

She turned to him. "Yes, but now we have…each other."

Their heads were drawn to one another as though magnetized (which they were, but that wasn't the only attractive force the two felt.) They closed their eyes, pursed their lips, and…

The sorceress dissolved into a cloud of incendiary gas less than a second before the kiss was established. As Cyborg watched the nebulous stuff dissipate, he uttered the only thing that felt appropriate.

"Damn it."

ENDCHAPTERTWENTYTHREEENDCHAPTERTWENTYTHREEENDCHAPTERTWENTYTHREE

Poor Cyborg. He never gets a break. At least, not in my stories. (Heh heh heh.) Now then, the matter of who's what in Chapter 21. Here's the list:

Robin's foes and new lord: Brothers Yamazaki and Godo, Bandit Warlord. Cyborg's foe/love interest: Vulshok Sorceror. Raven's foe: Shard Phoenix. Starfire's foe/drinking buddy: Balthor the Stout. Beast Boy's foe: Laccolith Titan.

If you want, look up the cards at Gatherer. (gatherer . wizards . com, sans the spaces.) Hope you enjoyed this chapter. Please review and tell me how you felt about it!


	24. A New Dawn

I apologize for the minor delay. The text was being uncooperative, and wouldn't form the usual flowing passages I expect from it. My muse had to get a new filter for my percolator of an imagination before things started working again. The marathon Baten Kaitos session wasn't necessary, but it was fun. :p

Anyway, here's the next chapter. For those of yu who can't quite figure it out from the colorful misspellings, I've given the dwarves (Balthor included) Scottish accents. Why? Because jovial, short-tempered, hard-fighting, hard-working, hard-drinking beings like dwarves always seem conducive to a Scottish accent to me. I also give some goblins Hispanic accents, though that's just for humor purposes and didn't show up in this story. But, I digress. I'll disclaim before I get off track again:

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Teen Titans, Magic: the Gathering, Baten Kaitos: Eternal Wings and the Lost Ocean, or any characters or images associated therewith. I also don't own the Calabi-Yau shapes formed by the legendary mana mists, though I will offer explanations about them if asked.

LEGENDSGETOTGOHOMELEGENDSGETOTGOHOMELEGENDSGETOTGOHOME

"Damn it."

Starfire turned. "What troubles you, Friend Balthor?"

"Wha' troubles me? Open yer eyes, woman!" With that, the dwarf brandished his double-headed axe. "Me bloody axe is dissolvin'!" Indeed, the blades of the weapon were slowly sublimating into the familiar superheated gas of unfocused red mana. "The Lady has abandoned us, which means there's nothin' keepin' us bound ta this world."

"Indeed," uttered a subdued Godo. He was watching mournfully as his yak suddenly exploded into a massive cloud of mana-gas. The sound of goblins popping in similar manners filled the air and raised the temperature. "Our time in this realm has come to an end." He rose from the table, which was also venting vermillion vapor, at bowed to Robin. "Champion," boomed the warlord, "it has been honor to know you and witness your prowess in battle. I hope that one day, we may meet again."

Robin returned the bow. "You are a wise and just ruler. I think you and my mentor would've gotten along excellently." Smiling at these parting words, the barbarian closed his eyes and evaporated. Robin watched, fascinated, as the cloud of gaseous Godo, instead of diffusing into the air, formed a bizarre shape in more dimensions than the Boy Wonder felt comfortable with, and seemed to inhale itself.

Balthor was oozing a haze of his own, and was frantically stuffing rolls and jerky into his pockets while he still had them. Noting Starfire's confused expression, the dwarf turned to her and grumbled, "Ye only get one go-round at th' banquet o' life, lass. It's always a good idea to tuck a few buns in yer pockets fer the road." Smiling as he grabbed one last loaf, he added, "Not ta mention, ye should ne'er say nae to free food, 'specially if ye dinnae know when yer next is comin'." With that, the warrior's structure finally failed, and he and his ill-gotten grub became an extremely multidimensional figure of mana-gas.

This figure imploded as Starfire digested the advice dispensed by the dwarf. Turning to Robin, she called, "Should we leave now?"

"If we don't," called a familiar, approaching voice, "we ain't gonna have anywhere to leave." Cyborg trudged to the other Titans, a look of unspecified but distinct frustration decorating his face. "The walls are closing in."

Robin raised an eyebrow. "I didn't know you were claustrophobic, Cy."

The mechanoman's human eye narrowed. "I'm not. I checked. The rock is literally regrowing and closing in." The other heroes then noticed the sound, just at the edge of hearing, of rock on rock, tectonic drift accelerated a thousand fold.

Starfire's eyes shone with concern. "Where are Raven and Beast Boy? We cannot leave them to be trapped in this increasingly cramped and unfriendly cave!"

As the three Titans prepared to search for their comrades within the shriveling cavern, a red light shone at it's lower end. The flare approached the three, stopped in their tracks by the sudden beacon, and absorbed the remaining vapors as it passed by them.

Robin, while thankful for the resulting drop of the temperature out of hairdo-threatening range, was wary. "Who's there?" he called.

As the radiance came closer, the teens could see that it was a jewel, presumably the Mox Ruby, held aloft by Raven. Both she and Beast Boy displayed a demure state of being. While for Raven, that merely meant being slightly quieter than normal, for Beast Boy it entailed a near-total reversal of his normal habits.

Such a change could not go unnoticed, prompting Cyborg to ask, "You OK, BB?"

The changeling opened his mouth to respond, considered something, then closed it and shrugged.

Raven supplied a response, knowing the lack of one would make Cyborg continue to ask until he received one. "We're fine. Getting the Ruby just…took a lot out of Beast Boy." The green boy nodded wordlessly.

Robin was skeptical, but decided to let his suspicions wait. "Well, we'd better get back to the Tower before we get crushed."

"Don't worry." The rest of the team turned to Beast Boy, not expecting him to say anything. "It'll just go back to the way it was before it was expanded."

"How do you-" Robin began.

"Te-The Ruby told me so," the shapeshifter muttered, and fell silent once more.

Watching him concernedly, Raven told the others, "You guys go ahead. Beast Boy and I will catch up soon." Nodding uncertainly, Robin gestured for the others to follow him as he left, heading for the Tower. Watching them leave, Raven turned back to her love and sat, gesturing for him to do the same. "You're still upset." It was a statement of fact, rather than a question.

Beast Boy plopped to the ground like a sack of cement. When he spoke, it was barely above a whisper. "Of course I'm still upset. She was practically the first person to ever really get me, and now she's gone."

"She was gone before. You heard the Ruby. She was reincarnated, and that means she died."

"But there was always hope." Beast Boy turned to look into the empath's eyes. The sorrow and severity there made her shiver. "Even when the Ruby said that, there was still a slight hope that we could at least change her body back, give her a decent burial. Now," he sighed, turning his face to the ground once more, "she's just a pile of rubble."

Raven sighed. She knew what she had to say, but that didn't make it any less cheesy. "Beast B-No, Gar." He resumed eye contact at the mention of his real name. "Terra isn't completely gone as long as we remember her. We don't need a tombstone or a plaque for that. We just need our minds, and our hearts, and she'll live on." She put her hand to his chest. ""And I know, Gar, that in your heart, it will always be the loyal Terra, the friend with whom you shared so many good times."

Beast Boy smiled, and then chuckled despite the tears running down his cheeks. "That was so tremendously corny," he said laughingly.

Raven rolled her eyes. "This from the emperor of all unfunny humor."

He glared playfully. "You know I know you think I'm funny."

"You're funny, yes. Your jokes? No."

His eyes became somewhat more serious. "Still, you're right. Just because Terra isn't in one piece doesn't mean we can't remember the fun we had with her. Besides," and with this his eyes regained the playful sparkle Raven so admired, "I wouldn't be able to spend too much time moping around here anyway, not when you start dragging me from place to place on dates again."

Raven gave a small but, for her, impressive smile. "And don't you forget it, you goo-" but was interrupted by the healing walls of the cavern. The stone tide had been approaching the couple for some time now, and finally reached them. The regenerating rock knocked Raven over just as she was pronouncing a soft "oooh," which mean her lips were in a perfect pucker as they met Beast Boy's.

The two stayed that way for some time, Raven's powers destroying stone at the same rate at which it grew back. Finally, Beast Boy exhausted the possibilities of nasal respiration and broke the lip lock. Smirking devilishly at Raven, he quipped, "If you'd have just done that, we could've skipped the cheesy speech."

She stood and dusted herself off nonchalantly, then began to exit the reformed tunnel quietly. Just as Beast Boy began to suspect the kiss had wiped Raven's memory due to oxygen deprivation, she turned her head and countered, "You know what they say: 'Half the fun is in the anticipation.'"

Smiling, Beast Boy caught up with the sorceress, and they left the cave hand in hand, accompanied by the all-too-innocent psychic whistling of a certain nearly omnipotent crimson corundum.

THENEXTDAYTHENEXTDAYTHENEXTDAYTHENEXTDAYTHENEXTDAYTHENEXTDAY

After a restful, uneventful night (aside from a few attempts by Silkie to render Robin insane again,) the Titans arose to a new day, and a new argument over the source of breakfast's protein.

"What," cried Beast Boy, "you didn't get enough meat when we got the Mox Ruby? They were roasting whole boars on spits!" He shuddered at the horrible memory of his fellow mammal's fate.

"Exactly! They had the right idea! Meat makes you strong, you saw how those guys almost beat us!" Cyborg countered. He bent down to nudge his vegetarian friend suggestively. "'Sides, if you want to impress Raven, you're gonna need a bit more muscle on your scrawny self!"

"I...she…we…but…"

"Uh uh uh," the mechanoman chided, "don't try and deny it now, we all heard Star yesterday. Raven likes you, and you've been telling me 'bout your little crush on her for quite some time." Cyborg ruffled the increasingly frustrated changeling's hair. "Now don't get mad, you two are cute together. I just wish Star and Kid Stoplight would follow y'all's example."

"Cyborg," Raven called from the table, "you do realize we're all right here."

"Able to hear every word," growled Robin, who was not amused by the 'Kid Spotlight' comment.

Starfire turned to him. "Please, Robin, exactly what did Friend Cyborg mean when he said we should 'follow the example' of our amorous friends? Did he perhaps think I should don a blue cape and you become green and constantly tell the jokes?"

"Er, well, he meant-"

"What I meant," Cyborg spouted, "was that you two should stop beatin' around the bush and start dating already!"

Robin glared menacingly at the cyberteen, while Starfire's eyes were illuminated with indescribable joy. Even as the Boy Wonder reached for a remote shutdown device he'd built in case Cyborg went rouge, the Tamaranean grabbed him by the wrist and flew out of the kitchen, happily burbling, "Come, Robin! We have much to discuss and so very, very much to do!"

Cyborg smirked happily at a job well done, but the smile vanished quickly when he saw his beloved cooking muscle tissue had been removed from the stove to make room for even more soy derivatives. Turning to the shapeshifter, he shouted, "YO! BB! What's the idea swapping my meat for even more of your gross tofu? I'm not eating that stuff!"

Grinning cunningly beneath his chef's hat, Beast Boy replied, "Oh, you will. And you'll like it, tin man!"

"Just to make sure you two don't kill each other," Raven interjected, "I can solve this dilemma rather easily." With that, she raised the newly acquired Mox Ruby.

"Oh no," Cyborg said fervently. "I ain't lettin' you change any more of my meat into nasty white goo."

"This is the Mox Ruby, Cyborg," the empath explained, "it controls red magic rather than blue, meaning it can and can't do different things. For example," with that, she let lose a blazing stream of energy from the Ruby. It made contact with the tofu occupying the area where Cyborg's assorted meat products once lay, and transformed the soy curd into precious, precious animal protein.

"Hallelujah!" Cyborg cried. "Joy to the world, the Meat has come!"

As the carnivore continued to celebrate the Second Coming of Ham Steak, Beast Boy turned to the empath. "Dude, why'd you do that?"

"You need to respect one another's dietary habits and beliefs. I've grown tired of this morning ritual of vegan versus Neanderthal."

"Neanderthal with more processing power than the space shuttle, thank you very much!" cried said hominid, breaking his red meat reverie.

"Neanderthal none the less. Besides, I want to get the last reading out of the way, and you two fighting over foodstuffs is taking way too much time for my tastes."

Beast Boy shrugged. "Whatever you say, Rae." He gave her a look of utmost seriousness, "Just remember: I don't drop the defense of tofu for just anyone."

Rolling her eyes benevolently, Raven spread the Mox Scroll, and placed the Ruby on its illustrated twin. The farthest right portion of the scroll erupted with verdant light as the war runes among the pictured Ruby faded to mere blood red. The green energy spread across the arcane material, but something was odd about what it was forming…

ENDCHAPTERTWENTYFOURENDCHAPTERTWENTYFOURENDCHAPTERTWENTYFOUR

Yes, the fifth and final reading nears. But what could be so odd about it? Is there no illustration? A map rather than writing? A recipe for something vegetarian? Well, no. Obviously, there's no way I'm going to tell you. Send reviews guessing the oddity, the location of the green Mox, or just your opinion about the fic. Press the button, please. I thrive on feedback, and I can't fix your problems unless you tell me about them.


	25. The Fifth Reading

Wow, talk about ask and ye shall receive! Not only did you guys offer a massive number of guesses as to the oddity of the fifth reading, you managed to push Mox Quest into triple digits of reviews! Sadly, (though it does mean I'm not becoming predictable,) no one managed to correctly guess what the twist was. Well, you'll be able to see it in here. I hope you enjoy!

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Teen Titans, Magic: the Gathering, Dragonball Z, or tofu bacon. I do like to call the lattermost facon. (Pronounced fake-un)

CAUTIONNUMEROUSREFERENCESAHEADCAUTIONNUMEROUSREFERENCESAHEAD

Raven spread the Mox Scroll, and placed the Ruby on its illustrated twin. The farthest right portion of the scroll erupted with verdant light as the war runes among the pictured Ruby faded to mere blood red. The green energy spread across the arcane material, but something was odd about what it was forming.

Her confusion must have shown on her face, because Cyborg looked over her shoulder while asking, "What's wrong?" He soon found out. "This isn't writing, is it?"

"If it is," she replied, "it's the most bizarre language I've ever seen."

Beast Boy was borne by curiosity to the scroll. "What's the matter."

Cyborg and Raven traded a nervous glance. "Er," the empath managed, "maybe you shouldn't look at this, Beast Boy."

The changeling's ears drooped. "Aww, now I have to." With that, he grabbed the scroll at a speed he usually reserved for the TV remote, and browsed it, starting from the left. "Got it, got it, got it," he muttered, "got it, that just leaves…uh…" His eyes rolled up into their sockets, he started to sway, and the drool was already pouring out of his mouth: All the signs that Beast Boy had been hypnotized were in place.

Cyborg shrugged. "Can't say you didn't warn 'im."

Raven nodded sadly, looking at the green hypnospiral that had formed around the illustration of an octagonal gem held in a stylized beast's-mouth frame. "We know how easy he is to hypnotize. Mad Mod demonstrated that more than enough times." She sighed. "So, what puerile amusement are we going to have to pull to break him out of it this time?"

None.

The telepath turned to the mechanoman. "You heard that, right?"

His face bore the same uneasy look. "I was kind of hoping you hadn't." The voice was better described in the plural. It seemed as though a billion throats were speaking as one, and that not all of them had been supplied with proper vocal cords, or in some cases, tongues. Determining their source wasn't easy. It sounded as though the voices bombarded their ears from all angles.

Hark me, seeker of the Mox of life.

Raven realized where the chorus was coming from. "Beast Boy?" She hurried to the prone changeling's side. His eyes were glowing greener than envy personified. His mouth opened anew:

The fifth and final

The closing step

Until you may feel

Rage, blues, and pep.

This body's homeland

Magnigoth grown

Among many, the Emerald

Awaits you, alone.

With that, the glow left Beast Boy's eyes, and said orbs rotated back to their usual positions. Blinking, Beast Boy resumed his rundown of the Moxen as if uninterrupted, "this one- Hey, wait a minute!" The green teen stood, turned to his friends, and said sadly, "I got hypnotized again, didn't I?" They nodded, and he sighed. "I'll go get the paper towels."

"Actually, you didn't drool that much," Raven told him.

"What did I do then, a Silky impression?"

"Actually, you recited the poem we needed to find the Mox Emerald."

"Oh." He paused for a moment to allow this to sink in. "Sweet! Where to?"

She frowned. "I'm afraid only you know. It said the Mox was in your homeland, and something about 'magnigoths.'"

"Oh," repeated Beast Boy, but this one carried much more weight than its predecessor. "I see." His body suddenly oozed seriousness.

"Is everything alright, Beast Boy?" Raven asked with concern.

"I was hoping I'd never have to go back there," he muttered darkly. He took a deep breath. "OK, let's go."

"Where to?"

"Have you ever heard of a country called Lamumba?"

WITHSTARFIREANDROBINWITHSTARFIREANDROBINWITHSTARFIREANDROBIN

Starfire streaked through the early morning air, her newly requited love giving her enough propulsive joy to circumnavigate the galaxy. Fortunately for her human passenger, her destination was the Jump Megamall, home of all things commercial. Still, she was moving fast enough to send Robin's lips flying back, and for early-rising bugs to come to a sudden halt in the Boy Wonder's teeth.

"Str…fi…r…" groaned the teen, struggling against wind sheer and the insectivorous perils of opening his mouth.

The alien came to a merciful stop, turning to her beloved. "What is it, o most adored Robin?"

He caught his breath and waited until he could distinguish between individual heartbeats before responding. "The mall probably isn't even open this early Star. And could y-"

She interrupted his request for easier flight. "Oh, you are likely correct. Besides, we shall have plentitudes of time now that we are," she giggled shyly, "outgoing."

"That's going ouuuuuuuuu!" Robin's correction was transformed into a scream as his object of affection rocketed back to the Tower. A tiny core of unshakability, deep in Robin's terrified psyche, thought to itself, _At least I haven't brushed my teeth yet._

BACKINTHEMAINROOMBACKINTHEMAINROOMBACKINTHEMAINROOM

"I see." Raven's voice came out small and awed. Beast Boy, at the others' encouragement, had explained the fates of his parents as well as his birthplace. It was understandable that he would hide something like that from the others. She herself hadn't laid bare her inner demons (she never did like that term,) until she deemed it absolutely necessary.

"Man," Cyborg was, if anything, further astonished. For the most part, he only saw the bright, goofy face Beast Boy put out to the world. "BB, I'm so sorry for making you tell us that. I never imagined…"

"It's fine." The changeling looked even more solemn than during Terra's betrayal. "Some things don't heal until you tell someone about them. My parents are in a better place now." He lifted his head to face the others, giving a smile. It wasn't his usual fangy beam, but a sincere, subdued smile; the kind Raven rewarded a lucky few with. "Let's get going."

"Oh no," boomed the robotic hero, moving to the oven. "After a story like that, we're all gonna need a good breakfast."

Raven was moderately astonished. "You can think of food after hearing that."

Donning his chef's hat and apron, Cyborg smiled and replied without taking his eyes off the stovetop, "With all your herbal tea, Rae, I'd think you'd be the first person to agree with me about the therapeutic powers of food."

"He's got a point," the shapeshifter concurred. He then realized his position relative to those of Cyborg and the cooking foodstuffs. "Hey! You'd better not-"

"Relax, BB. You reveal a secret from the depths of your soul, I cook tofu. It's only fair." Cyborg turned from breakfast with a look of utmost severity. "Just remember: It's a one-to-one exchange. This is all the soy that story's getting' out of me."

The green one's witty retort was cut short by the doors opening. Starfire and Robin entered the main room. The alien saw Cyborg's culinary activities and broke into an ecstatic grin. "Glorious! Friends Beast Boy and Cyborg have compromised and have agreed to prepare both the animal and soy proteins for our morning meal!"

"Just. This. Once." repeated Cyborg, emphasizing every word.

"Starfire," noted Raven, "the whole 'holding hands' thing is sweet and all, but you do realize Robin is unconscious, right?"

"Hmm?" Starfire finally looked down her arm. The hand holding hers was white, it's grip tighter than a vise. The rest of Robin's body was totally limp, and during the final moments of the Tamaranean's return flight, he had probably flopped about like a kite's tail. "Oh no!" Star cried despondently, "Have I broken beloved Robin?"

Raven sighed, but benevolently. "Just lay him on the couch and I'll see what I can do."

BREAKFASTISSERVEDBREAKFASTISSERVEDBREAKFASTISSERVEDBREAKFASTISSERVED

After several minutes of cooking and emergency mystical resuscitation, all five Titans were enjoying the most important meal of the day. Cyborg, true to his word, had prepared tofu, but only that which imitated animal products. Fortunately, Beast Boy was more than happy to chow on soy eggs and tofu bacon. Even Robin was up and eating, though he still flinched whenever someone made a sudden movement, resulting in several demonstrations of the ballistic properties of pork and cutlery.

After she got Robin a new fork to replace the one now embedded in a wall, Starfire turned to the vegetarian. "Friend Beast Boy, though you have willingly sampled a number of my homeworld's delicacies, I have yet to try food made from the beans of soy. Please, might I try a strip of your bacon-shaped tofu?"

"Sure, Star," replied a smiling shapeshifter, "always happy to share the soy."  
The alien sampled the strip of not-meat, despite Cyborg's frantic head shakings. She grimaced, and swallowed with visible effort. Smiling uncertainly, she euphemized, "Thank you friend, but perhaps it is best if I refrain from further consumption of such…products." She quickly added, "Only, of course, so you may enjoy as many of them as possible!"

"Y'know, Star," said Cyborg, "there is a way to turn that strip of nastiness into honest-to-goodness bacon."

"Truly?" she cried ebulliently. Apprehensively clearing her throat, she spoke more moderately, "That is to say, is there such a method? I ask only out of curiosity and not at all out of revulsion towards the taste of this…unbacon."

"Of course," said the grinning cyberteen. Turning to Raven, he said, "Yo, Rae. You wanna whip out the Ruby again?"

"Couldn't she just give back the tofu bacon?" asked the empath.

"No!" Starfire insisted, "It is among the greatest insults on Tamaran to return offered or requested food after accepting it. To do so would be suitable grounds for a duel to the death to restore the honor of both parties!"

Sweatdropping nervously, Beast Boy told Raven, "Feel free to meat-ify Star's bacon any time now."

Raven was as unnerved as the changeling. "Maybe it would be best if Starfire does it herself…" She handed the alien the Mox Ruby, instructing her, "Just point it at the bacon and think 'Be meat.'" The empath ignored the expressions of the boys as she outlined the surprisingly simple method.

However, as soon as the gem of chaos and passion touched the warrior princess, energy began to course between the two. "This," intoned Starfire, echoes of volcanic eruptions and meteor impacts audible beneath her voice, "should be put to better use than improving the flavor of unpleasant fare." With that, she applied the Ruby to her choker armor, on top of the green gem in its center. A flash of heat later, the jewel was fused to the girl's uniform.

Upon this fusion, a red aura of power began to flow around Starfire, energy moving from the tips of her feet to the top of her head. Screaming, she increased the energy flow exponentially, and caused her hair to stand on end. The power bleached this mane, making the Tamaranean resemble a svelte, blonde Bride of Frankenstein. "This is like the Jewel of Char'ta," she boomed, "but I feel even more power with it than I did then!"

The other Titans were too stunned by Starfire's sudden transformation from cheerful tofu-phobe to crackling tower of ferocity to do anything for a moment. Beast Boy was the first to say something: "Star's become a Super Saiyan!" Indeed, the palpable energy field and spiky blonde coif made her resemble the overmuscled protagonists of a certain popular anime series.

"Worse," said a wide-eyed Robin, "a Super Tamaranean."

"This power," crowed the newly enhanced alien, "it is wondrous!" With that, she flew out of the windows, melting a hole through them with the apparently superheated aura around her.

"We have to stop her!" Raven exclaimed. (Well, exclaimed for her.)

"No," Cyborg said flatly. "You and BB have to get the last Mox. Robin and I can handle Super Star."

"Right," Robin agreed. After a moment's pause, he asked in a most unleaderlike way, "We can?"

"You can with these," Raven said. With that, she pulled the Mox Pearl and Sapphire from the ever-convenient secret pockets in her cloak. Putting them on the table, she elaborated, "Use them only as a last resort, and make sure you maintain mental superiority. Remember, you're heroes, not mindless automatons of these gems."

The two nodded. Cyborg tossed the keys to the T-Car to Beast Boy. "Here. I was gonna escort you two, but we have an alien to stop." He considered something for a moment. "Again."

"Sweet!" cried the changeling, "I finally get to drive the T-Car!"

"No, Raven does. She knows my baby inside and out."

Raven snatched the keys from the deflated changeling, commanded, "Come on," and dashed for the garage. Beast Boy quickly followed suit.

Robin and Cyborg nodded at one another. The leader pointed an authoritative finger at the circle of cooling molten glass and cried, "Titans, GO!"

ENDCHAPTERTWENTYFIVEENDCHAPTERTWENTYFIVEENDCHAPTERTWENTYFIVE

I felt I owed you guys I climactic battle against the Mox Ruby itself, rather than just its forces. Besides, I needed an excuse to get BB and Rae alone together. (That was oxymoronic.) Aside from fluff, you'll see why soon enough. Now press the pretty button and tell me what you think, and your opinion towards soy-derived pseudomeat.


	26. Chaos in the Street, Cars in the Air

Hello once more, pseudomeat enthusiasts and deriders alike! Nice to see we have a near-even distribution thereof. I apologize for the relative lateness of today's update. I've been enjoying my latest video game purchases: Tetris DS and Big Brain Academy. I've already broken the kilogram mark in the latter, though the former is proving somewhat more challenging. Don't worry, I shan't suspend Mox Quest for the sake of Tetrominoes. Now then, I'll disclaim before ranting further.

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Teen Titans, Magic: the Gathering, The Simpsons, the Global Positioning System, or any satellites thereof. I do own the Cy-Wing, but it is heavily influenced by the Neurok Hoversail card, which I don't own.

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Robin and Cyborg nodded at one another. The leader pointed an authoritative finger at the circle of cooling molten glass and cried, "Titans, GO!" The two remaining Titans then moved in the opposite direction, so they too could get to the garage.

Cyborg grinned in anticipation on the way. "I've been wanting to try out the Cy-Wing for a while now."

Robin raised an eyebrow. "'Cy-Wing'? You never told me you were working on anything like that."

"That's 'cause it ain't called the R-Wing. This is my little treat to me, one I don't have to share." The half-robot's eyes filled with pride. "Besides, she's even got a cup holder!"

The leader sighed. "As long as it can hold it's own in a battle."

The two arrived at the garage level just in time to see the T-Car headed east, to collect the final Mox. Cyborg dashed up to a tarp-hidden lump of something-or-other, said triumphantly, "I give you…THE CY-WING!" and pulled back the cover.

Robin had to admit, it was pretty cool looking. The construct resembled a headless steel albatross, wings swept back, and legs twisted upward to help form the cockpit. Naturally, pieces of it featured Cyborg's signature cerulean circuitry styling. "Nice," commented the Boy Wonder, mounting the R-Cycle. "Now get on."

"'Nice'? NICE?" Cyborg was not amused. "Do you have any idea the breakthroughs needed to make this thing? I practically rewrote the laws of magnetism just to-"

"Cyborg! I'm sure you put a lot of time and energy into it, but we kind of have a situation right now. We need to get going."

"Fine," replied Cyborg, followed by a series of largely unprintable grumblings. He leaned into the cockpit, resting his chest on the steel surface and engaging the foot pedals that controlled pitch, yaw, and other fun aeronautic terms, leaving Cyborg's hands (and sonic cannons) free. The maiden flight of the Cy-Wing began, as it and the R-Cycle were prepared to face the dangerously supercharged Starfire. "Here goes everything," thought Cyborg, and the two vehicles exited the Tower, heroes in tow.

INTHETCARINTHETCARINTHETCARINTHETCARINTHETCARINTHETCARINTHETCAR

Beast Boy sighed, watching yet another stretch of the Atlantic speed by beneath the repulsor pods embedded in the T-Car's hubcaps. "Remind me again why I'm not driving?" he said.

Raven sighed as well. As much as she loved the changeling, he was still an unholy terror during long trips. "For the seventh time: 1. Cyborg said so, and this is his car." Beast Boy had no defense for this, so he settled for a disgruntled harrumph. "2. The last time you used a motorized vehicle, it collapsed in less than a day."

"You can't blame me for that!" he cried, "I had to crash the B-Ped into the Destruct-O-Tron to turn the thing off. Otherwise the planet would've been explodified!"

"Regardless," she replied crisply. "3. I have that all-important quality for operating a car that you don't."

"What? A gem on your forehead? Eight different voices in your head? Little blue booties?"

"A driver's license."

Beast Boy's ears drooped in defeat. "Oh, right. Sorry about the 'voices in your head' comment."

"Don't worry about it," Raven replied reasonably. The changeling's bubbling sense of relief was popped by the empath's next comment. "At least, not yet."

Desperate for a change in subject, Beast Boy found a good one. "Hey, look! Land ho!" Indeed, African coastline was ahead of the duo. "Lamumba should be in the western part of the continent, in the heart of the rainforest."

"I think the GPS might be a bit off," said Raven. "According to our readings, we should be approaching the Sahara, but it's trees as far as I can see."

The changeling's eyes widened as he took in the view. "Dude…that is the Sahara. Or was. You can just make out the shape of the jutting-out part of the continent."

The sorceress realized he was right. "This must be the work of the Emerald. It's accelerated the growth rate of the jungle to ridiculous levels. There's no telling what havoc this could be wreaking on the other ecosystems."

"Then let's get down there!" cried Beast Boy. Unfortunately, after he said that, a sudden shudder passed through the vehicle. A nervous eye towards the fuel gauge showed that the needle was on "E."

"That might not have been the best choice of words," deadpanned Raven, as the T-Car began the plunge into the unnatural vegetation.

BACKINJUMPCITYBACKINJUMPCITYBACKINJUMPCITYBACKINJUMPCITY

The fight against Starfire was not going well. The dilemma of battling a former Titan was only a minor concern. The real problem was predicting what she would do and where she would go next. So far, the tuned-up Tamaranean had pillaged a jewelry outlet and a grocery store, but was now emerging from a tattoo parlor where she had politely waited her turn and paid in full.

She was almost unrecognizable as the gentle soul so many in Jump City had grown to love (or, in some unfortunate cases, lust after.) Her hair still rivaled Marge Simpson's in height, but streaks of red had returned to the largely blonde coif, giving Starfire the overall appearance of a giant, lit, multicolored matchstick. Her body was bedecked in rings, bracelets, anklets, several earrings in new piercings, and a particularly tasteless gold necklace to which the Ruby had affixed itself. Mustard coated much of her body, and the condiment was smeared in sigils of war on the girl's face like war paint. The heat aura still raging off her skin slowly boiled the goop, giving off a scent that cleared sinuses from thirty paces. Her uniform still served the primary purpose of all clothing, but was currently damaged to borderline indecent levels. In short, it looked as though someone had thoroughly extracted Starfire's sanity and had thrown it out the nearest window.

Exiting the tattoo parlor, she flew off in a seemingly random direction, leaving a heat trail easily traceable by Cyborg, who was doing just that. Cy-Wing and R-Cycle fervently pursued the bespelled girl through the skies and streets, both minds desperately trying to find any pattern to Starfire's activity, when she suddenly came to a dead halt in midair.

Both sane Titans hesitantly approached the mad alien, Robin positioning himself directly below her, Cyborg slowly hovering to her side. "Star?" he said slowly, "You feelin' OK now?"

The girl turned to him and smiled. Just as the mechanoman began to relax, her happy grin turned into a psychotic rictus, and she fired what her pursuers had dubbed a Super Starbolt: Starfire pointed both palms out toward the foe, forearms pressed together. Red energy cascaded across her palms, formed a sphere, and compressed, sending a beam of destruction screaming towards whatever she was aiming at.

In this case, it was the Cy-Wing, and while Cyborg managed to see the move coming, he couldn't avoid it completely. The energy ripped through the pedal controls, vaporizing the tempered steel and throwing the device out of control. Its pilot mournfully abandoned aerodynamic magnetic levitation device, firing his sonic cannon at the ground to cushion his fall.

Starfire giggled as she watched the now uncontrollable construct pinwheel across the sky until it hit a skyscraper. Seeing that the show was over, she shrugged and cartwheeled through the sky, destination unknown even to her.

As Cyborg hit asphalt, he turned to Robin and said, "That settles it. We have to use the Moxen."

"But Star-" Robin stopped himself. Beast Boy's words from the Mega-Raven incident echoed through his mind. _Would you go if it was Starfire?_ The Boy Wonder now had an answer. He would not fight the girl he loved, but this wasn't her. This was a monster that had to be stopped so he could get her back. He turned back to Cyborg. "You're right. Need a ride back to the Tower?"

"Nah, I got one." Cyborg called up a control display on his right arm and pressed something. A few moments later, a perfect copy of the Cy-Wing came to a gentle landing next to him. "Inventor's First Rule: Always make backup copies whenever possible."

With that, he bestrode the new flight device and headed for the Tower. Robin followed suit, thinking, 'I'll get you back, Starfire. I promise.'

The author would like to show what is currently going on within Starfire's psyche, but cannot without a particle accelerator, several varieties of illegal hallucinogens, the liver of a platypus, and an unripe cantaloupe. Hopefully you can infer from that the general situation. Sorry.

WARNINGCRASHIMMINENTWARNINGCRASHIMMINENTWARNINGCRASHIMMINENT

Fortunately, Beast Boy and Raven's current situation is only occurring in three spatial dimensions at the moment, though altitude is currently the one of most pressing concern. Raven had managed to keep the T-Car aloft for a while, but the mental strain was beginning to overwhelm her.

Beast Boy watched nervously as the dark aura around them flickered as Raven began to lose the tug-of-war against gravity. "Raven, we have to land soon."

"Don't…you think…I know that?" she managed between breaths. Sweat was dripping down her face as she struggled to keep several tons of metal convinced that it was doing just fine where it was, and that falling wasn't a viable option. She knew she couldn't do it for much longer. "Beast Boy…when I say bail…bail out."

"What about you?"  
"I'll be fine. Now bail!"

"Not without you!"

"We don't…have…ugh." Raven passed out, exhausted from the prolonged telepathic exertion. Unfortunately, that meant the T-Car was now free to begin its final descent, and the heroes within had a lot more to worry about than putting their tray tables up and returning their seats to a locked, upright position.

Beast Boy didn't bother to think. He morphed into an orangutan, and then grabbed Raven with two hands while he opened his door with a third. He then dove, empath in tow. The now decidedly land vehicle crashed through the canopy, giving the simian shapeshifter plenty of opportunities to grab a broken branch with one arm for a moment and lose some momentum while keeping Raven safely in the other three. By the time he reached the understory, he could safely rest on a lichen-rich limb to make sure Raven was uninjured without turning himself into primate pâté.

Raven awoke to see a face that resembled a cross between Homer Simpson and a half-inflated balloon, done in green. It quickly changed into a more enjoyable sight, Beast Boy's smiling, relieved visage. "Ugh," she moaned, "what happened?"

"Well, you were holding the T-Car up, but you got really tired, and I wouldn't get out 'cause you never said how you'd get out, and you were all like, 'Get out!' and I was like, 'Not without you!' and you passed out, and I just kinda blanked out from there until about a minute or two ago when you and I were on this branch and I was an orangutan."

It took a moment or two for Raven to process this. "So," she said finally, "where exactly in the forest are we?"

He shrugged. "Dunno. All these trees are blocking the signal to the communicators, so I can't check the GPS."

"And it's sticky as hell out here," she complained, trying to fan herself with her hand.

"I guess. I think it's pretty nice." Beast Boy took a deep breath of the thick air and smiled. He turned back to Raven. "So how are we going to find the Emerald?"

"Well, I still have one Mox left to help us find it."

Beast Boy did a quick rundown of what they'd left in the city, then stopped in shock. "No. You can't use the Jet! It'll take over again!"

"Not if I'm careful," she assured him as she holding the offending gemstone. "Besides, it's actually a little afraid of me after the last time."

_Don't kid yourself,_ sneered the black jewel, but quietly. Raven ignored this, and carefully tapped into the dark energies of the Mox Jet. An arrow, black as pitch, appeared and pointed in a direction that otherwise seemed no different from any other in the lush landscape.

"We go that way," said Raven, pointing in the exact opposite direction than that indicated by the arrow. Noting Beast Boy's skeptical look, she elaborated. "Black and green magics are naturally opposed to one another. Whatever direction the Jet wants to go, we go the other way."

He considered this, finally saying, "If you say so…" Sitting up, he prepared to transform, but turned to her and asked, "You can still fly, right?"

She performed a demonstrative levitation. "Apparently."

The shapeshifter gave his signature toothy grin. "Then let's go!" With that, he turned into a gibbon and started merrily swinging through the trees.

WITHINTHETOWERWITHINTHETOWERWITHINTHETOWERWITHINTHETOWER

"So," finished Robin, "are we agreed?"

_Very well,_ the Mox Pearl replied, _we'll augment your natural abilities to stop our chaotic sibling._

"And?" Cyborg prompted.

A mental sigh came from the Mox Sapphire. _And we won't try to take control. But we're only doing this because this is the Ruby we're talking about here._

"Whatever works," responded the mechanoman.

_Indeed,_ said the white jewel. _And if you could both now don us?_

With that, the two Titans threw the thin chains attached to the Moxen over their heads. Blinding twin flashes of blue and white energy flashed through the Tower for an instant. After that instant, Robin and Cyborg beheld their altered forms.

"Well," concluded the leader, "this is different."

ENDCHAPTERTWENTYSIXENDCHAPTERTWENTYSIXENDCHAPTERTWENTYSIX

I was tempted to leave you hanging with the plummeting T-Car, but I decided speculation about the affects the Pearl and Sapphire have on Robin and Cyborg would be much more fun. Now go, tell me what you think I've done to the Boy Wonder and the Half-Man Half-Machine! Or just tell me what you thought of the chapter. I'm flexible.


	27. Metroid and Angels and Trees, Oh My!

Wow. Kind of hard to believe this story's grown this enormous. As a word of warning, I intend to conclude Mox Quest by the end of the month. Hopefully, you'll all enjoy the final chapters. Oh, and sadly, no one was able to correctly guess what Cyborg's upgrade involves. A few came close with Robin, but didn't take it far enough. To see the answers, you'll just have to read on:

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Teen Titans, Magic: the Gathering, the Metroid video game franchise, Retro Studios, or Picture-in-Picture. I do own a few words used in this chapter, as you'll see in the afterword.

The two Titans threw the thin chains attached to the Moxen over their heads. Blinding twin flashes of blue and white energy flashed through the Tower for an instant. After that instant, Robin and Cyborg beheld their altered forms.

"Well," concluded the leader, "this is different." Robin was almost unrecognizable, heavily armored except for her back, from which sprang giant, snowy bird wings. A massive broadsword lay in one hand, a large shield in the other. The only…wait a minute, her? "Why am I a girl?" asked the Angelic Wonder.

_You are an angel,_ said the Mox Pearl, as though this covered every possible explanation.

"There are male angels, you know," responded a piqued she-Robin.

_Not my angels. _My _angels are female constructs of purity and grace. I don't _do_ male angels._

Robin sighed. "At least I kept my mask." Indeed, there were still a few traits that kept Robin identifiable as Robin. The angelic broadsword looked like an engorged Birdablade, the shield bore the familiar "R" emblem, and, indeed, Robin still had a mask on. She also had the same black hair, though it now flowed in onyx tresses to hip length, devoid of gel. Turning to see if Cyborg suffered the same fate, the head Titan saw that she couldn't tell. "Please tell me you're a girl under there."

Cyborg's current gender was well hidden by a highly advanced looking suit of armor. The technoteen carefully examined the suit, a blue and gray exoskeleton that, while resembling the usual cybernetic augmentations Cyborg relied on, appeared far more efficient. The half-robot saw with great surprise that where a right forearm usually lay was a rather large cannon-like device.

Shifting focus, Cyborg then examined the inside of the helmet that now contained the hero's head. The visor gave the world a slight blue tint, and what appeared to be a heads-up display within the viewing device showed structural integrity, ammo counts, radar, and a few other measurements, gauges, and icons that weren't immediately familiar.

Hesitantly, Cyborg's voice was tested for any signs of gender inversion. "It's a valid question," he said hesitantly, but he quickly smiled and gave a "Booyah!" upon hearing his familiar, testosterone-deepened harmonics. "Sorry, Robinette, I'm still the man!"

_Fortunately,_ commented the Sapphire, _I'm more flexible about gender roles than my esteemed sibling._

This quip finally completed the thought process Cyborg had been mulling over since the transformation. "I know what this thing is!" he exclaimed, "This is the Varia Suit! I'm a male Samus Aran!"

_I decided to browse your memories for anything appropriate and stumbled upon that design. I thought it looked cool, so I implemented it. I call it the Cyberia Suit._

"Great," muttered Robin, "you get the mystic artifact that likes video games."

Gem and mechanoman both ignored the sarcastic seraph. "So," asked Cyborg, "were you able to restore my body, too?"

The Sapphire responded uneasily. _Weeeeell, I'm not that good at crafting, y'know, flesh. Most of your cybernetic parts are still there, linked with the suit. The good news is that I was able to fix your head, at least for the time being._

"Why don't I like that qualifier?"

_Because once I reclaim my power, half of your face is going back to cyber chic. Sorry, I can't do healing._

_Enough of this blather!_ cried the Pearl, _We must subdue the Ruby or there could be irreversible repercussions! TO ARMS!_

"I agree," Robin said, "we need to get moving. Come on!" With that, her wings flapped and, pausing only to actually open the windows first, the new angel flew out of the Tower.

"So, can you get this thing airborne?" Cyborg asked the Sapphire.

There was a sound that, while indescribable, is best conveyed as the psychomineral equivalent of cracking one's knuckles. _Now flight,_ replied the blue gem, _I can do._ With that, cerulean energy scintillated across the Cyberia Suit, focusing in the back. After a short period of retrofitting Retro Studios' design, the Sapphire triumphantly declared, _One freshly fabricated cyanomana jetpack, calibrated and ready for use!_

"Then let's go!" With that, Cyborg blasted out of the open window, following the Winged Wonder, both set to search for Starfire.

MEANWHILEINTHEJUNGLEMEANWHILEINTHEJUNGLEMEANWHILEINTHEJUNGLE

"Well," Raven deadpanned, "That's inconspicuous." She and Beast Boy had been trudging (Well, Raven trudged. Beast Boy took to the area like a duck to water.) through the jungle for an hour, in the exact direction the Mox Jet told them not to go. Now the two beheld a massive wall of wood. It wasn't an area of above-average arboreal population density, but a solid barricade made from fused tree trunks. "Well, this shouldn't be too hard," she said, and phased a hand into the massive structure. As soon as it entered, the wood around the hand began to fizz and crackle. Just as Raven found that she could insert herself no further into the barricade, a massive flash of green expunged her from it and into a nearby tree.

Beast Boy rushed to her. "You OK?"

"I'll be fine," she replied, "but it looks like it won't be so easy to get to the Emerald. Think you can do it?"

"No problem," Beast Boy boasted, and changed into a monkey. Failing to locate a handhold, he turned into a cat. Unfortunately, the wood was so tough, his claws couldn't penetrate it, not even as a panther. Finally, the shapeshifter tried the form of a gecko. Amazingly, after the first few steps, the lizard fell off the wood like a bad suction cup. "OK," he admitted after returning to human form, "problem."

"You could always fly over the thing," Raven pointed out.

"Oh yeah," he replied, grinning nervously. "I was, uh, just about to try that." With that, he shifted to a dragonfly, and began to gain altitude. Just as he reached the top of the wall, a sudden breeze picked up. Beast Boy turned into a swallow for greater stability, but the wind increased. Desperately, the changeling assumed larger and larger flight-capable forms, but the winds only intensified, soon reaching hurricane-level speeds.

Finally, a _Quetzalcoutlus_ came crashing down outside the wall of wood, Raven rushing to its side. "Are you OK?" she asked anxiously.

Groaning, Beast Boy returned to human state. "One hell of a crosswind," he muttered. "How come you didn't help me out?"

She looked down guiltily. "I tried. I couldn't get any lift. I think my powers are being suppressed this close to the Emerald."

"Well, I can't climb this thing, I can't fly over it, and something tells me it runs deeper than I can dig." Frustrated, the changeling kicked at a pebble. "Now what?"

"I said my powers were suppressed, not cancelled. If I focus, I should be able to levitate us over the wall." She stopped his interruption before it came with a raised hand. "As long as I'm concentrating, no amount of wind should be able to affect me."

Frowning, Beast Boy considered this. "I don't like all the 'shoulds,' but I guess it's the only option."

"All right, sit next to me," Raven commanded, assuming the lotus position. She shut her eyes and focused her every thought on the pull of gravity and telekinetically giving it the finger. "Azarath Metrion Zinthos, Azarath Metrion Zinthos, Azerath Metrion Zinthos…" Her familiar mantra accompanied her gradual rise from the ground. Slowly, she gained altitude, eventually peaking over the lip of the wall. Crosswinds tore at her hair and cloak, but the empath remained steady, moving forward those few crucial feet. Finally, she allowed gravity reign over her mass. The disgruntled force dragged her down rapidly, but a lush layer of grass cushioned Raven's fall.

"Oof." With that, the empath managed to pull herself up to a sitting position, and looked around. "Oh, that's a magnigoth." The comment was directed towards the gargantuan tree that stood in the center of the apparently circular blockade. It was easily the size of a decent office building, and surrounded by incredibly healthy grass. There was only one green object missing from the view. "Beast Boy?"

Much to Raven's surprise, the wordless reply came from directly behind her. Feeling around her back, she foun something suspiciously warm and fluffy in her hood. Moving the mystery fuzzball to her face revealed it to be Beast Boy in the shape of an adorable kitten, which explained his mewling reply. Smiling, Raven said, "OK, you're cute. Now why did you stow away in my cloak?"

Returning to human form, Beast Boy explained. "With all the 'shoulds' and 'probablies' and 'maybes,' I figured the least I could do would be to reduce the weight you had to lift." He smiled. "That, and you seem like a cat person."

Raven ruffled the boy's hair. "Well, I'm not. I'm a Gar person. Now let's go get that Mox."

"Right!" With that, Beast Boy struck a triumphant pose and cried, "TO THE TREE!"

Raven's giggle was cut short by looking at the tree once more. It suddenly seemed a lot more intimidating. "I don't know," she said, surprising herself, "are you sure it's safe?"

He looked at her perplexedly. "Look around, Rae. Grassy field, ginormous tree, solid barrier preventing any access. What's there to be unsafe?"

She tried to rationalize the strange fear. "It's just that, um, green magic is the best at creating living beings. There's probably a whole army waiting in that thing!"

The changeling looked at the tree, wrinkling his nose. "I don't smell anything but pollen and sap. We're fine." He turned to her, understanding oozing from every feature. "I know this is kind of overwhelming with the excitement and all. If you're nervous, Raven, you don't have to go up to it."

"I, uh…" She sighed. No use fighting it, she knew what happened when she tried that. "OK."

Beast Boy gave his winning smile. "Well then, I'll be right back!"

BACKINJUMPCITYBACKINJUMPCITYBACKINJUMPCITYBACKINJUMPCITY

Hovering, Cyborg scanned this latest street. Since they were unable to find Starfire from any wakes of destruction or cries of terror, he and Robin had split up to scour the city and quash the overcharging effects of the Ruby.

Switching to infrared, Cyborg found the jackpot. "Robin," he called on the now in-visor communicator.

A small screen appeared within the HUD, depicting Robin's face in all its divine glory. "You found something?"

"I've got a heat trail here that's shadin' into the white. Either our girl passed by, or somebody's been playin' Catch with an active nuclear reactor."

"I have your coordinates," Robin replied, "I'll meet you wherever the trail leads."

"You got it," replied the vaguely surreal image of Cyborg's face without cybernetic attachments, which then dissolved before the winged warrior.

"Remind me again why that's replaced my communicator?" Robin asked the Pearl as she surged towards the coordinates that had somehow been inserted directly into her mind.

_An angel can always hear whenever another speaks to her directly. It was a simple matter to unite this ability with your communicator's video feed to create illusions of the speaker._

"Interesting," Robin replied, "So what happens if-"

" Oh Robby-Poo!11!1!one" cooed an all-too-familiar voice, as the accompanying face materialized before the angel.

"Kitten…" muttered the winged one darkly.

Meanwhile, Starfire was relaxing in a lovely hot tub, her mustard body paint dissolving into the water give a smell often associated with saurian flatulence. The giant Jacuzzi was formerly a municipal pool before the power-crazed alien had decided she wanted a dip. Now her heat aura was heating the water to full boil, and any other living being would've been boiled alive a long time ago. She sighed with pleasure, and the resulting cloud of charged energy sent a delightful current through the water.

Cyborg landed at the edge of the chlorinated caldera, switching back to normal view. "OK now, Star," he began, giving diplomacy one last chance. "If you just come with me, I'm sure we can calmly and rationally-"

Roaring, the Super Tamaranean surged forward, delivering a headbutt to the exosuited Cyborg at near supersonic speed.

"I'm guessing that's a no," he groaned, and lifted his arm cannon.

_Quick reminder, Cy,_ the Sapphire advised, _I was only able to replicate the Power, Wave, and Ice Beams. No Plasma or missiles._

"I know, I know," he muttered, firing a number of Power Beam rounds at the alien. Sadly, she was able to absorb the shots into her own blast, which was released as soon as Cyborg stopped. Barely rolling aside, he switched to Wave Beam, the arm cannon briefly glowing as it reconfigured itself. "Robin," he mumbled, "wherever you are, hurry."

"And then, after I remove the vibrator, we can-" Kitten's diatribe was cut short by Cyborg's head taking it's place, relaying the invocation he'd said before charging Starfire anew. "We have to hurry!" cried Robin, her disturbed paralysis removed by the plea for assistance.

_Buh- Guh- She…how…and…_ The Pearl was still in a state of shock.

"We don't have time for some sick girl's fantasies," the angel scolded, "we have a battle to win!"

_R-right. But I don't think I'll ever be able to look at honeydew melons in the same way ever again._

"You and me both."

INTHEJUNGLETHEMIGHTYJUNGLETHECHANGELINGSLEEPSTONIGHT

As Beast Boy raced to collect the Emerald before the other narrative shoe dropped, Raven tried her best to unravel the reason she was so frightened by the tree.

'It's just a big tree,' she reasoned, 'A huge hunk of wood and leaves and stuff. Nothing at all scary about it at all.' She looked back at the gargantuan plant. If anything, it was more frightening than ever. 'OK, so maybe it is kinda menacining. And mean-looking. And really, really, pee-my-leotard scary where the heck is Gar I need him he's always so brave and-'

The empath took a deep breath. 'Calm down, Rae. Rae? When did I start thinking of myself as Rae? I am Raven, daughter of…what's his name. Big scary red guy. Not as scary as the tree, but still. Four eyes. Raped Mom. Tip of my tongue." She snapped her fingers in desperate recollection. "Trigon, that's it!'

She suddenly realized the importance of that last thought process. 'Sweet Azar on a stick, I couldn't remember the name of the being that's defined my very life? What's happening to me? It's like the, the…Oh Azar, what's the word? Smartness? We'll have to go with that. Like all the smartness is, like, being sucked out of my body. Or head. Or brain. Whatever. So, like, why is that happenin'?'

She smacked herself on the forehead. "Great, I'm starting to sound like those bimbos back in, in, um…the city. That'll have to do. Oh man, I can't even…even… Wait a minute, am I saying this out loud? Can't I even keep up an inter…inter…oh, come on! Think, girl! Internal monologue! Yeah, that! Can't I keep one? They're probably real cheap, and I want one. Maybe Gar will get me one."

She paused, more and more cognitive power slipping out. "I'm hot."

Desperately trying to keep her train of thought on rapidly melting tracks, Raven concentrated harder than she could ever remember (Which, due to her drawing all available brainpower into this thought process, was about ten minutes.) "OK, green magic. I'm almost intrinsically composed of black magic, an opposing color. Green doesn't think, it relies on…thingummy, instinct. That means anything smart gets too close to the green gem, it undergoes a process of dumbening. How do you spell 'dumbening,' anyway? Wait…dumbening isn't a word! Crap! I'm losing IQ points as I speak. Oh Azar, Garfield! He barely thinks as it is, what could this be doing to him?"

Unfortunately, before Raven could further pursue this question, her higher cognitive processes totally shut down, leaving her with the limited instinctual suite of human and demon. Since only the former was accustomed to grasslands, and nothing nearby looked both gatherable and edible, she decided to sit and wait for her mate to return, picking at grass to fill the time.

Beast Boy was, incidentally, totally unaffected by the intellect-dampening powers of the Mox Emerald. Since only a handful of minds he'd used had any sentience to them, he was protected by the verdepsionic equivalent of several hundred pounds of Kevlar. As he climbed the massive tree in monkey form, he reflected on the following:

'Heh, guess I've really come full circle. First a green monkey jumps down from a tree and bites me in Africa, and now I'm in Africa, as a green monkey, climbing a tree. It's, like, irony or something. Raven'd know. Well, I just hope Mom and Dad are proud of what I've done. I wonder if they'd approve of Raven? Heh, nice thing about both people being orphans. No embarrassing meetings with the parents. Oh man, what if ol' Big, Red, and Demonic tries to crash the wedding? Heh, imagine him giving away the bride.'

All right, I never said the kid was focused on one thought at a time in normal circumstances, did I? Anyway, after mentally chuckling at the image of Trigon the Terrible in a tuxedo, giving away Raven, Beast Boy reached the Mox Emerald. The gem was embedded in the trunk, an octagonal, faceted jewel in the maw of a golden, framing beast. Beast Boy, confident in his footing, returned to human form, and grabbed the Emerald. "OK," he said, knowing what he had in mind was both stupid and potentially quite fun. "One, two, THREE!"

On three, he pushed off the magnigoth's trunk, Emerald clutched in both hands. Both boy and Mox flew off the tree. Triumphantly, Beast Boy put the jewel in his mouth and transformed into a pelican, then soared to a landing. Spitting out the invaluable pendant, he returned to normal, and picked it back up. That was when it decided to say something.

_You know,_ the Emerald said in a chorus of voices ranging from the insectoid to the cetacean, _I don't like being plucked like a ripe berry from my resting place. I don't like being swallowed. And I especially don't like being treated like just any piece of jewelry. I'm not happy. In fact,_ it began to glow ominously, _I'm angry. And you won't like me when I'm angry._

ENDCHAPTERTWENTYSEVENENDCHAPTERTWENTYSEVENENDCHAPTERTWENTYSEVEN

A warning: Don't try to look up cyanomana, verdepsionic, or ginormous in the dictionary. Those are patented OMisms. (Well, maybe not ginormous.) Just don't want everyone futilely flipping through Webster.

Now then, this round of speculation is as follows: What will the Emerald do to Beast Boy? Will Raven ever recover her higher thought processes? What exactly was Kitten doing and talking about? I can assure you that the first two questions will be answered in the next chapter. As for that last one, you really don't want to know.


	28. Combat Phase

Hello all! I apologize for the very late delay. Events (and my own procrastination :P) seemed to conspire against me finishing this chapter in time. Don't expect an update tomorrow, though there will be one come Saturday. I hope.

Also, I should warn you of a number of things: Firstly, this chapter doesn't have much in the way of Beast Boy/Raven scenes, though there is one with Trigon. Second, I will be treating the subject of Hell rather lightly in one instance. To those of you adamant about your religion, I mean no offense. Third, this is the third to last chapter of Mox Quest. Sorry, but I'm starting college in barely more than a fortnight (two weeks) and I can't have this story distracting me. With that in mind, enjoy!

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Magic: the Gathering, Teen Titans, the Metroid video game franchise, the Parthenon, any and all intellectual properties referenced in the poker game scene, including the Rolling Stones, Ask a Ninja, or Richard Garfield. Phew!

FIGHTCHOREOGRAPHYISNOTMYSTRONGSUITFIGHTCHOREOGRAPHYISNOTMYSTRONGSUIT

_You know,_ the Mox Emerald said in a chorus of voices ranging from the insectoid to the cetacean, _I don't like being plucked like a ripe berry from my resting place. I don't like being swallowed. And I especially don't like being treated like just any piece of jewelry. I'm not happy. In fact,_ it began to glow ominously, _I'm angry. And you won't like me when I'm angry._

After this proclamation, the green Mox erupted with inner light, and streamers of verdant energy streamed from the gargantuan tree, the lush field, and even the surrounding wall of wood into their source: The gem laying on the grass before Beast Boy.

Rising above the ground, the enraged Emerald spat, _You want my power? Take it. Take all you can handle._ The thin chain attached to it detached and lashed out like a madly accelerated vine, constricting itself around the changeling's throat. It didn't try to choke him, but reattached itself to the Emerald, resulting in the jewel hanging from Beast Boy's throat, giving it the perfect position and opportunity to pour energy into the hapless hero.

Fortunately, since the Emerald retracted its influence on the grove, Raven's intellect was no longer suppressed, and came rushing back at the considerably increased speed of thought. It came just in time for the empath to regain sentience as she was scratching herself indelicately. Quickly retracting her hand, Raven remembered the last thought she had before sinking into stupidity. "Beast Boy!"

Turning upon hearing his name, the shapeshifter cried to Raven, "Stay back, Rae! The Emerald…it's got me!"

Rushing to him, the telekinetic tried to comfort him. "Don't worry, Gar. Fight it, and I'll get it off." She tried to get hold of the chain, but it sprouted nasty thorns, keeping her from getting a grip on it. Trying her powers didn't work either, as a green mana current sent through the gold repelled the demonic influence. "This is decidedly not good," Raven said anxiously.

"Raven…" Beast Boy growled, his voice much deeper than usual, "I won't be able to fight it much longer. Run. Get the others. HURRY!" This final cry was more howl than shout.

"No," she said adamantly, despite the tears welling in her eyes. "You helped me when the Jet overwhelmed me." Raven rose, black aura enshrouding her hands as power glowed from her eyes. "I'm returning the favor."

_It's your funeral,_ chorused the Emerald, as it finally broke Beast Boy. Screaming with pain and rage, he expanded, Spandex-rippingly changing into the Man-Beast.

'It's OK,' thought Raven, 'Even when he the Man-Beast, he never hurts me. He protects me.' Sadly, this line of thought was disproved after a savage blow to the midsection that sent the empath hurtling back.

_You just don't get it, do you?_ the Emerald screamed, _Your mate is not at the reins here. I am! And I have no qualms about smashing half-demon face._

"Then I don't have to feel bad about doing this!" said half-demon retorted, encasing the Man-Beast in her familiar shadowy aura and slamming it into the ground.

As she prepared for a second blow, a jade-hued energy emanated from the brute, disrupting Raven's hold on it. _It would seem I have to kick this being's powers up a notch,_ mused the Emerald. With that, more green power poured out of the jewel and grounded itself in the changeling's body.

As the Man-Beast's body started to grow and mutate, Raven could only watch in rapt horror, and mutter to herself, "We're gonna need a bigger telekinetic."

THEPUNCHOUTATTHEPOOLTHEPUNCHOUTATTHEPOOLTHEPUNCHOUTATTHEPOOL

Cyborg and Starfire fought each other to an uneasy stalemate. Energy blasts from either side were negated with the same. Cyborg occasionally outmaneuvered Starfire, but the alien always retaliated with an even more relentless assault than usual. As of the current point in the narrative, Cyborg was on the ground, preferring motion in two dimensions while aiming in three. Starfire featured a few more streaks of red in her "Super Tamaranean" hairdo, as well as a smile that could only be displayed by those with near negative sanity. Each was somewhat out of breath, but magical energy allowed rapid regeneration on both fronts. Also, a rather unique Mexican Standoff was taking place. A fully charged Ice Beam shot and a barely restrained Super Starbolt took the place of the more mundane projectiles.

Cyborg broke this stalemate with a tried and true superhero tactic. Pointing behind the crazed alien with his left hand, he shouted, "Behind you!" As she retracted her blast and turned, he released the cryogenic energy. Unfortunately, since he was pointing, his body received the full force of the recoil, sending him spinning backwards.

After the exosuited teen righted himself, he was shocked to see no sign of Starfire, frozen or otherwise. "Where-?"

_Radar_, the Sapphire reminded him. His eyes flicked to the handy feature of the suit's HUD, which unfortunately showed another blip right…

"Behind you," mocked the faster-than-estimated girl, before sending a massive pulse of destructive energy through the Cyberia Suit. System after system succumbed to the strike, before the superstructure itself felt the effects of the shattering spree. Cyborg collapsed face first, most of his body wrecked with the armor. Grinning, Starfire turned and ascended anew.

_Cyborg?_ Transmitted the Sapphire, _you still with me?_

"Barely," he groaned.

_I have good news, better news, great news, and horrible news._

"If any of this is about car insurance," threatened the disabled do-gooder, "I'll use that sledgehammer I have in the garage."

_Well I'm glad none of it is. The good news, I can rebuild you. I have the ability. Better news, since we're so close to water and a clear sky, I can repair everything rather quickly. Great news, I was able to adapt some of the red energy to create missiles and the Plasma Beam._

"And the horrible news?"

_None of that is going to matter, since the Tamaranean girl is about to blast us into oblivion._ Indeed, Starfire was concentrating much of her energy into a single sphere of chaotic destruction. She smirked with anticipation, pointed her hands, and-

OHHOWEVILIAMOHHOWEVILIAMOHHOWEVILIAMOHHOWEVILIAMOHHOWEVILIAM

Raven continued to watch helplessly as the Man-Beast's form mutated almost beyond recognition. Its form rose as it hypertrophied, bones creaking as they struggled to support the ever-enlarging muscles while expanding themselves. A tail erupted from its coccyx, a mere tuft of fur soon developing into a sinuous, prehensile appendage before that too gave way to an enormous rod of flesh, coated with massive keratinous growths that straddled the line between scale, stinger, and blade. (It's a very interestingly shaped line.) A second set of arms began as vestigial, tyrannosaurian extremities, but soon developed into near perfect copies of the Beast's original forelimbs. Those arms grew to near ridiculous proportions, sacrificing opposable thumbs for even greater crushing and goring power. The thing's face grew more lupine, face giving way to muzzle. Finally, the creature's form stabilized, supporting itself on legs the size of Parthenonic pillars. _Now, my Omega Beast,_ crowed the Emerald from it's precarious position about the colossus' neck, _go forth and show this world what happens when a gem of green magic is roused from its slumber!_

_You know, _spoke a different telekinetic voice, exclusively to Raven, _now would be an excellent time to use me._ She turned to the source of the oleaginous offer, her cape pocket.

"You'll take over again," she said, though with little conviction.

_At a time like this, _wheedled the Mox Jet, _does it really matter?_

Raven thought hard, biting her lower lip as she debated the consequences of letting a monster that could practically eat monster trucks whole rampage freely versus unleashing her own terrible potential. "Fine," she said finally, slipping the eldritch stone over her neck.

As the familiar changes took place, Raven's last autonomous thought was, 'Beast Boy, please be alright after this.'

DISCAPITALCITYOFHELLDISCAPITALCITYOFHELLDISCAPITALCITYOFHELL

Trigon the Terrible, bane of mortals, and host of the latest "Post-Failed Attempt at World Conquest Sons of Satan Poker Game," sniffled.

"What's up, Triggy?" asked a refined looking gentlemen, his human leather briefcase safely stashed under his chair, "Something in your eye?"

"That joke never gets old, Junior," replied the Terrible one sarcastically. "I'm just proud of my little girl. She's turning into such a fine young demoness."

"Ahh, zzzweet little Raven," said a giant anthropomorphic fly fondly. "Why izzz it you allowed her to zzztop vizziting?"

"Oh you know, threatening suicide before the prophecy could be fulfilled," dismissed Trigon, "the usual childish excuses. But now that she's using the Mox Jet again, she may start visiting us more frequently."

"I certainly look forward to it," cooed an effeminate demon, cards held awkwardly in one lobster-like claw, "I do so love children." Reflecting for a moment, he muttered in a much harsher tone, **"At least when they know their place."**

"And once again, the day was saved," mocked a player who looked remarkably like Adam Sandler, "thanks to-"

**"Don't you dare finish that sentence,"** spat the vise-handed one.

"Hey," called a player who looked quite like Trigon, with two fewer eyes and more in the way of skulls and chains in his wardrobe, "am I the only one here who came to play some cards? You girls can break up the sewing circle any time now."

"Sewing," reflected a female "son" of Satan, "it's a good thing."

The others were about to tell her to shut up when a knock at the door was heard. "Hello?" called the knocker, "I got an order for, like, six hundred sixty six extra large pineapple and soul pizzas for a mister 'Trojan the Terrorist.'"

Trigon raised an eyebrow and said, "Winner eviscerates his living soul?"

There was a chorus of "Deal," a showing of cards, and a handful of disappointed groans. The dapper gentleman rose and opened the door.

"'Cha, so that'll be, like, three thousand seven hundred forty bucks and, like, seven cents," recited the acne-ravaged delivery boy, "plus tip."

The debonair man smiled most unpleasantly. "Please allow me to introduce myself," he began, "I'm a man of wealth and taste…"

THEBLINDETERNITIESTHEBLINDETERNITIESTHEBLINDETERNITIESTHEBLINDETERNITIES

Attempting to describe the space between dimensions to one who has never seen it is, to borrow from a wise ninja, like trying to describe Final Fantasy VIII to a lemon. The best approximation is the vacuum of intergalactic space, charged with more magical energy than Richard Garfield's imagination. The end result is pure chaos, totally hostile to non-planeswalking life. Fortunately, Pentagram did not fall under this category, and traveled through the Bastard Plane in the eleven-dimensional equivalent of a casual backstroke. He halted for a moment and espied a strange pentathaumic radiation coming from a universe he'd just visited.

"Huh," he said to himself, then turned to face a direction ninety degrees from everything else, a.k.a. the fourth wall. "Hey, Overactive Mind."

Yeah?

"You made them activate all five Moxen, didn't you?"

We're nearing the climax.

"I see. Guess I'll be paying Raven another visit soon, then?"

Sorry, I've got readers.

"I think they make an ointment for those now."

Ha. Ha. And also ha. Anyway, I can't divulge that information at this time. It'd ruin the ending.

"Understood. Have fun." With that, he paddled off to realms unknown.

Heh. "Have fun." Don't I always?

BACKATTHEPOOLBACKATTHEPOOLBACKATTHEPOOLBACKATTHEPOOL

Echoes of the earlier cry of "STARFIRE!" still rang through the city. At the pool-turned-battlefield, Cyborg suspected he was dead, since he saw an angel. It took him a moment to realize the plumed warrior was in fact Robin, and that said gender-bent hero(ine)'s angelically endowed shield had blocked what would've been a finishing blow.

Starfire growled furiously at being denied this strike, and began to thrash out at her new foe, hellbent on destruction. Robin parried with her sword or blocked outright with her shield, nervously glancing at Cyborg's condition from time to time.

So did Cyborg. The Cyberia Suit's visor had restored itself, and the energy meter was slowly refilling itself. As it did, he began to notice a gradual return of movement in most of his body. He'd already managed to turn himself over so he could see what was going on. As Robin blocked a particularly vicious blast, he noticed one of the visor icons come back. Sending a mental command to the Sapphire, Cyborg switched to Scan Mode, and began to analyze Starfire, hoping to find some sort of weakness. The results came back thusly:

Taxonomy: Berserk Tamaranean

Tamaranean female endowed with additional strength, speed, and firepower both from genetic experimentation and rufuthaumic enhancement, the latter at the cost of sanity and stamina. Mentally unstable and impulsive, bordering on psychopathic. Near invulnerable while magical augmentation persists. Exhaust before attempting to subdue. Hair pigmentation's returning to normal acts as accurate gauge for remaining magical energy. Exercise extreme caution while subject is still capable of aggression.

After processing this, Cyborg called out, "Robin! You gotta wear her down, she's got no staying power!"

"Could've fooled me," muttered the angel as she weathered yet another blow. 'Still,' she thought, 'he's the one with the scanner, what have I got to lose?'

_I have a plan,_ the Pearl informed her, then expounded it.

"Better than anything I had," Robin said. The angel then released a massive blinding flash, sending Starfire recoiling in pain. As the light faded, Robin was nowhere to be found.

Her new prey gone, Starfire remembered the one she'd been about to destroy. Grinning in anticipation, she turned, but was shocked to see Cyborg standing erect, armor gleaming. The same light that had repulsed the Tamaranean had sped the mechanoman's repairs to completion.

"Don't know what Rob's thinkin'," said Cyborg, "but I like this part." With that, he began charging the Ice Beam anew, dodging the furious strafing his adversary threw at him. Once the charging was complete, he felt the irresistible superhero's urge for a clever pre-finisher one-liner. "Chill out, girl," he quipped, as he launched an Ice Spreader.

This was met halfway by a massive blast from Starfire. As the subzero missile met the white-hot plasma, there was another massive flash of light. This one, however, carried with it a much different effect.

ENDCHAPTERTWENTYEIGHTENDCHAPTERTWENTYEIGHTENDCHAPTERTWENTYEIGHT

I apologize for the low Beast Boy/Raven content in this chapter, but after she puts on the Jet, it basically consists of a demon and a giant hunk of muscle beating each other senseless. As fun as that is to watch in person, it's far more visual than can be effectively conveyed in writing.

Anyway, for this chapter's activity, see if you can guess who else attended Trigon's poker game (aside from the hapless pizza boy. He's just cannon fodder.) Or just tell me what you thought of the chapter. Either way, review! Opinionate! Tell me what you think!


	29. Tapping Out the Moxen

I sincerely apologize for the belated update. I am scum. Yes, quite literary scum, but scum nonetheless. This humble scum promises that the next and final update will be on schedule.

Now, for the answers to last chapter's trivia: Aside from Trigon, the Satanic offspring consisted of (In order of appearance): Lucifer Jr., subject of the Rolling Stones song "Sympathy for the Devil," Beelzebub, Lord of the Flies, Him, of Powerfuff Girls fame, Little Nicky, from the movie of the same name, Rakdos the Defiler, guildmaster of the Clan of Rakdos and obligatory inclusion from Magic: the Gathering, and Martha Stewart. Oh, you know she's evil.

Enjoy the next-to-last chapter, everyone!

DISCLAIMER: We, the personalities of Overactive Mind, in order to form a more perfect fan fiction, establish justice, preserve ownership rights, provide for the common entertainment, promote high-quality television, and secure the blessings of comedy to ourselves and our posterity do disclaim and relinquish all rights to Teen Titans, the Metroid video game franchise, Dragonball, Volkswagen, the Rolling Stones, Little Nicky, Martha Stewart Enterprises, and any and all Judeo-Christian scripture.

ILLMISSYOUALLILLMISSYOUALLILLMISSYOUALLILLMISSYOUALLILLMISSYOUALL

A wintry Cyborg-sent Ice Spreader met a massive blast from Starfire. As the subzero missile met the white hot plasma, there was a massive flash of light, reminiscent of the one emitted by the currently absent Robin. This one, however, carried with it a much different effect.

After the flash dimmed, an observer could see that both the Chozo-powered mechanoman and the berserk Tamaranean were encased in thick ice, as was much of the area around them. Starfire was still airborne, a chilly pillar supporting her in place of boundless, mad glee. For a moment, all was quiet, the creak of ice in the summer sun the only sound.

Then, the icy casing around Cyborg began to recede, as though being drawn into the Cyberia Suit. In fact, the frigid crystal was being absorbed and reconverted into blue mana by the Mox Sapphire. As the suited teen eased himself out of his brief period of cold storage, the mighty column holding up Starfire began to hiss ominously, steam pouring from cracks along the cryogenic chrysalis atop the structure. A massive boom ripped through the area as Starfire explosively emerged from her icy prison.

The girl was unrecognizable from the being that had entered the casing, making her far more recognizable as Starfire, Princess of Tamaran. Her hair was largely back to its familiar russet tone, with only the tips still the Super Saiyan-ish blonde. As Cyborg watched, the last bit of blonde faded from one strand, allowing it to fall from its hirsute spike and fall into Starfire's face. The aura of concentrated heat that once surrounded the girl was no more, as evidenced by her shivering and tooth-chattering, both throwing off the air of menace she was trying to give, still locked in a battle stance.

Cyborg's state of intrigued analysis was broken only when the Tamaranean gave a wordless battle cry and dove at him, Starbolts charged in each fist. He readied his arm cannon, but was interrupted by a cry that was carried not by so mundane a medium as atmosphere, but the celestial fundament itself:

"**STARFIRE!"**

With this thundering call, the air above the two combatants distorted, briefly opening to reveal a realm of ineffable, non-Euclidean beauty. From it emerged the angelic Robin, diving like a humanoid peregrine falcon. She did not spread her wings as she neared the ground, instead using all her momentum to slam her Pearl-enhanced Birdablade into the ground between Cyborg and Starfire. From this impact arose a shimmering, iridescent barrier, spreading in every direction to form a seemingly infinite plane.

Starfire, unfortunately, was also in the middle of a dive as this happened, as ended up smashing into this energy face first. Both her skull and the barricade held, and she slid down it with a sound like a wet finger dragged down a window. Rising, she proceeded to deliver a very painful-looking series of blows and blasts to the wall, which never even reacted to these strikes.

Cyborg readied his cannon for when the barrier would inevitably fail, but Robin lowered his arm. "She's gonna break through at some point!" insisted the suited one.

"No," replied the Angelic Warrior. "Wait and watch, my friend. You will see."

Cyborg easily noticed the unusual harmonics and echoes of that voice, one that was more implanted directly into the mind rather than going through the ears. "Robin?" he cautioned.

"In part," replied the angel. "We have reached something of a compromise, a symbiosis, if you will."

"Just promise me you'll take off the Mox Pearl after this is over." There was an uncomfortable pause, marked only with Starfire's assault on the protective plane. "One of you better say something."

"I will." This reply came only with the slight echo that appeared to be part of Robin's angelic form. Robin couldn't see Cyborg's face behind the suit's visor, but she could feel the look he was giving her. "I needed the Mox Pearl's knowledge as well as its power to pull off that trick," Robin rationalized. "It was the best way to ensure we could save Starfire with minimal energy to any party."

The half-bot sighed. "I guess you're right. Just don't risk your own awareness next time you pull a stunt like that."

"Agreed." With that, the two turned to see Starfire's progress. The alien lay on her knees, exhaustion clear on every part of her body. She still weakly beat the boundary between her and her teammates, but soon slumped to a prostrate position. As the last bit of blonde faded from her hair, the princess lapsed into merciful unconsciousness. Robin sheathed her sword and removed the Ruby from Starfire's neck. Spreading her wings, the angel turned to Cyborg and proclaimed, "I'll get her back to the tower. You clean up the place." With that, she flapped off.

Cyborg looked around. Ice as far as the eye could see, and then some. He sighed and said to the Sapphire, "I don't suppose you could take care of this?"

ATTHEJUNGLEFIGHTATTHEJUNGLEFIGHTATTHEJUNGLEFIGHTATTHEJUNGLEFIGHT

The fight between beast and demon was proving to be something of a stalemate. Whenever the demon tried to snuff the beast's life force, the Mox Emerald regenerated it. Whenever the beast attempted to smash the demon to pulp, the smaller, agile being was able to dodge the clumsy blows. Death hexes were deflected by keratinous growths. Tail swings were risen over. On one very memorable occasion, a loogie the size of a Volkswagen Beetle was barely deflected telekinetically. Each breathing heavily, both combatants now charged one another in a final gambit for dominance in this battle of both life and death made flesh.

It was at this point the Mox Ruby hit its exhaustion point, sending a feedback pulse to each other Mox. In the case of its allies, the Emerald and Jet, this feedback was negative, resulting in a massive drain on their own mana supplies. In order to conserve their power and maintain sentience, each reflexively shut down all spells they were maintaining. What all this gobbledygook means for Beast Boy and Raven is this: They turned back into Beast Boy and Raven.

Thus, the mutual lunge for the throat turned into a tearful embrace. Each held the other tightly, protectively, never wanting to let go…until they opened their eyes. That was when both teens realized they were clad solely in their underwear, at which point they promptly released one another and averted their eyes from each other, blushes ripe on both sets of cheeks.

"Um," Beast Boy muttered awkwardly, "how exactly did this happen?"

"Not entirely sure…" returned a reddened Raven.

FLASHBACKTHEFIRSTFLASHBACKTHEFIRSTFLASHBACKTHEFIRSTFLASHBACKTHEFIRST

Raven paused as more and more cognitive power slipped out due to the Emerald's influence. "I'm hot."

Desperately trying to keep her train of thought on rapidly melting tracks, Raven concentrated harder than she could ever remember Since she was drawing all available brainpower into this thought process, that span was about ten minutes. Because of this, she didn't notice as her body automatically divested itself of excess clothing to ease the uncomfortable heat, namely, her cloak and leotard.

FLASHBACKTHESECONDFLASHBACKTHESECONDFLASHBACKTHESECOND

"Raven…" Beast Boy growled, his voice much deeper than usual as he and Emerald battled for control, "I won't be able to fight it much longer. Run. Get the others. HURRY!" This final cry was more howl than shout.

"No," she said adamantly, despite the tears welling in her eyes. "You helped me when the Jet overwhelmed me." Raven rose, black aura enshrouding her hands as power glowed from her eyes. "I'm returning the favor."

_It's your funeral,_ chorused the Emerald, as it finally broke Beast Boy. Screaming with pain and rage, he expanded, Spandex-rippingly changing into the Man-Beast. Indeed, the Emerald had such total control, even the smidgen of concentration needed to convert the uniform along with the rest of Beast Boy was gone. The changeling's mind was barely able to change his boxers before totally succumbing to the greater psionic presence.

BACKINTHEPRESENTBACKINTHEPRESENTBACKINTHEPRESENTBACKINTHEPRESENT

"So…" Beast Boy began again, "should we call the others?"

"That depends," drawled Raven, indicating her quick recovery from embarrasment. "Do you know where your communicator is?"

"Uhh…do you?"

"Yes, actually."

"Really?" In his excitement, the changeling turned to face Raven. "Where?"

"Eyes forward, buster!" she snapped. "It's in my cloak. Let me get it."

Beast Boy waited patiently for her to retrieve the device. Once he heard her sit back down, he'd figured out what had been bothering him. "Hey, Raven?"

"What is it?" she asked, though calmly.

"How did you know I was looking at you?"

LETSLETTHEMSORTTHATOUTLETSLETTHEMSORTTHATOUTLETSLETTHEMSORTTHATOUT

Robin swooped into the Tower common room, Starfire in her arms. Laying the alien on the couch lovingly, Robin's hand moved to the Mox Pearl. Hesitating for a moment, the angel looked at the gem, then at Starfire a few times. Finally, she lifted the chain attached to the Pearl, removing the gem. The white magic quickly faded from Robin's form, which transitioned from shapely angel back to svelte, but male, human.

Once his Y-chromosomes were restored, Robin breathed a sigh of relief. Starfire then began to stir, and he rushed to her side. "You alright, Star?"

"I believe so," she whispered sleepily, "I am merely very tired."

"Then rest," Robin said gently.

"Robin?"

He knelt down again. "What is it?"

She answered with a brief, sweet kiss on the lips. "You make a very beautiful female," she collapsed back on the couch, "but I prefer this Robin." With that, she fell back asleep, leaving the Boy Wonder stunned and speechless.

ANDBACKTOTHEPOOLANDBACKTOTHEPOOLANDBACKTOTHEPOOLANDBACKTOTHEPOOL

"Rassafrassin', gender-hoppin', self-important, paranoid little stoplight thinks he can just fly off with his girlfriend and leave me to do all the work." So Cyborg grumbled as chunk after chunk of ice was reabsorbed into the Sapphire. His dark mutterings were interrupted by a familiar face popping up on his visor. "Hey, Raven," he sighed, "what's up?"

"We kind of need a ride back," replied the image.

Cyborg paused. "Now I hope nothin' happened to my baby."

"Well…"

"If you let that grass stain drive the T-Car-"

"No, nothing like that-"

"He played with the buttons, didn't he? Man, he's worse than Starfire…"

"Actually, we just ran out of gas." Raven's eyes narrowed dangerously. "Now, are you going to keep insulting my boyfriend, or are you going to pick us up?"

"I'll pick you two up," Cyborg replied, "but only because you admitted BB's your boyfriend." He stretched out this last word to obscene lengths, but his laughter was interrupted by an observation. "Hey, Raven, is that a bruise on your neck, or-"

"Raven out," snapped the empath, cutting off the communication. She rubbed the hickey fondly. "He noticed," she said, turning to the changeling, "you owe me ten bucks."

"I heard. So what do we do until they get here?"

"Hmm, let's see." She tapped her bottom lip thoughtfully. "Two scantily clad teenagers in the middle of a hot, humid jungle, alone for an indefinite but brief period of time…" Beast Boy's eager grin grew wider with every passing phrase, "Let's do something I know you'll love." His smile now put his head at risk of falling of his shoulders. The empath lay back on the clearing's still lush grass. "Want to watch the clouds?"

Beast Boy opened his mouth, closed it, considered opening it again, and finally laughed and laid back so his head was next to Raven's while their bodies moved in different directions. "Sure."

ENDCHAPTERTWENTYNINEENDCHAPTERTWENTYNINEENDCHAPTERTWENTYNINE

Well, just one chapter left to wrap things up, then this epic is over and done with. Send reviews, people, it's almost your last chance! Oh, and as trivia, guess what I based the disclaimer on!


	30. Wishes: the Granting

The beginning of the end! I'm going to miss this, so I hope you all enjoy this final offering of Magicy Titans goodness! Also, my top secret civics experiment revealed only two people were able to correctly identify what I used as inspiration for Chapter 29's disclaimer: The preamble of the U.S. Constitution! Congrats to realfanficts and The Hidden Girl. Anyway, it's time to get down and shut 'er down:

DISCLAIMER: Despite more than a year of planning, writing, and procrastination, I still don't own Magic: the Gathering or Teen Titans, nor do I own Martha Stewart Enterprises, the movies _Little Nicky_ and _Alien_, or any of the names in the chant, except the last one. I also own VillainCon '06, but feel free to write stories set there.

The T-Ship came to a landing in the clearing, blowing back the grass with its jets. The front hatch opened to reveal an irate Cyborg, who shouted, "Alright, you two, where are you and WHAT HAVE YOU DONE WITH MY CAR?" He'd been incandescent with rage since seeing the impact crater the unfortunate auto had made after the forest had receded.

"Breathe, Cyborg," Robin chided from the central cockpit, "You've rebuilt the T-Car at least five times. What's one more?"

Cyborg's retort would have been largely unprintable, and in most comic books, would've largely been represented by the nonnumeric symbols found along the number row of your keyboard. It is therefore fortunate that Raven chose that instant to emerge, body entirely shrouded in her cloak.

"Let's just say Cyborg prefers driving the T-Car to rebuilding it," drawled the empath, "and leave it at that."

Cyborg, his opportunity to vent at his leader stolen, decided to direct his fury on the destroyers of his baby. "So where exactly is BB? You two owe me a new ride!"

His question was answered as a suspiciously green squirrel emerged from Raven's erect hood and scurried to her shoulder. It also performed the rodent equivalent of flipping the bird to the half-bot, but not even Cyborg's prosthetic eye could detect the subtle gesture. Raven, however, quietly chuckled at the fuzzy being's antics. _Very_ quietly.

"Alright team, let's get back to the Tower," commanded Robin. "I don't want to leave Starfire alone for too long in her condition."

"Why'd you leave her at all?" Raven asked as she climbed into the starboard cockpit.

Robin smirked. "To make sure Cy didn't kill Beast Boy for crashing his car."

A vein pulsed violently on Cyborg's forehead. As he engaged liftoff, the half-droid created a private circuit between his comlink and Robin's "Y'know, Rob, I wouldn't be joking about me if I were you," he said over the covert connection. "I happen to have retained digital camera capabilities while magically enhanced."

The mask dilated to accommodate Robin's widening eyes. "You didn't."

"Oh, I not only did, I'll submit them to every major paper in the country unless you do everything I say." Cyborg's grin outmatched any a foe of the Titans had cultivated for sheer evil.

"You will pay for this, Tin Man," the Boy Wonder growled, "Mark my words."

"Whatever you say, _Angela_." With that, he reconnected Raven's comlink to the network, just in time to hear Robin's sputtered rebuttal. It came much to the Titan's leader's horror when the sorceress replied to this cry with:

"OK, what did I miss, and why was Robin yelling something about an armored bodice?"

The trip from then on was punctuated by the laughter of a mechanoman and the quiet, contented snores of a green kitten napping on a certain empath's lap.

BACKATTHETOWERBACKATTHETOWERBACKATTHETOWERBACKATTHETOWER

After landing and a hurried explanation by Robin on the subject of cleavaged chain mail, the Titans assembled expectantly in the common room to witness the culmination of their recent efforts. Unfortunately, there would be a brief delay.

"Why must we wait, friend?" asked a still-drowsy Starfire.

"I need some additional materials and components from my room," replied Raven, "and given the amount of magical energy this is likely to release, it's better done on the roof anyway."

"So how come your new familiar gets to come with?" Cyborg commented. While he wasn't feeling quite as malicious towards the two not-so-secret lovers, he still felt the habitual need to poke at their relationship.

"Believe it or not, he'll actually be able to help me retrieve them," the telekinetic rationalized, "And he used 'The Face.'"

Indeed, Beast Boy was still in kitten form, currently perched atop Raven's head. He gave a short mew, Quasi-Domesticated Feline for "No one can resist 'The Face.'"

All questions laid to rest, the two moved for their floor of the Tower. Upon reaching the point at which they had to part ways, Beast Boy deftly leapt off Raven's head and reverted to his boxer-clad default form. "Thanks for covering for us, Rae."

Raven was still holding her cape tightly around her similarly skimpy attire, and the blush she'd been repressing was allowed to rise. "Not like anything else was going to. See you on the roof."

The changeling smiled gently. "Wouldn't it be better to walk there together?"

"All right, see you here. Oh, and Beast Boy?" The changeling turned. "Squirrel fur tickles."

UPONTHEROOFUPONTHEROOFUPONTHEROOFUPONTHEROOFUPONTHEROOF

The Titans were all assembled. Raven, adorned in a fresh leotard, placed the Mox Emerald on its pictured double. A verdant beacon emerged from the scroll, and as it faded, so did the swirling light pattern of the hypnospiral, leaving a forest green blotch. The scroll then glowed elsewhere, as it did after each Mox application. This time, however, the shining energy emerged from the back of the golden substance. Raven turned it over, revealing a scintillating silver energy that traced out a pentagram and a chant. A design was near each corner of the pentagonal design, an outline of the Mox to place there, with the symbol of the gem's mana within.

Beast Boy looked over her shoulder. "At least the words are in English this time," he noted.

"Well Raven, you're on," Robin prompted.

"Right," she responded. She placed each Mox on its given point. Once the Emerald was lain on the octagonal outline housing a stylized tree, all five erupted with a mystic light. Closing her physical eyes, Raven read out the chant using only her mental vision.

"Isamaru Kentaro Soraya Jabari Capashen Darien Raksha Akroma Erayo Laquatus Ultimus Ixidor Arcanis Zhouyu Unspeakable Seeing-Wind Kiku Umezawa Irini Gallowbraid Kyoki Shauku Sengir Kuro Slobad Mannichi Adamaro Jeska Telim'Tor Zirilan Ryusei Maraxus Rofellos Mirri Iwamori Jolrael Multani Silvos Molimo Sekki Isperia Szadek Rakdos Borborygmos Conclave Obzedat Stone-Death Kraj Niv-Mizzet Razia Phelldagriff Halfdane Tresserhorn Sek-Kuar Johan Glint-Eye Dune-Brood Ink-Treader Witch-Maw Yore-Tiller Cromat PENTAGRAM!"

Upon the pronunciation of the name of the being Raven was summoning, the pentagram tore loose of the golden scroll, enlarging and shifting from silver to gold. The entire top of Titans Tower was quickly consumed by the dilating design. Once this was achieved, the pentagram ceased its growth, in order to allow for the entrance of Pentagram.

An entrance it was. The ubiquitous magical shine fragmented itself, palpable pieces of light detaching themselves from the energy field to congregate at the very center of the engorged emblem. These pieces assembled themselves into a humanoid form, which slowly descended to the surface of the roof. As a final macrophoton connected itself to his forehead, Pentagram opened his eyes, and his mouth.

"What's up?"

It was, without a doubt, one of the most anticlimactic moments of all time.

Raven's mouth opened, but the sarcastic comments she wanted to say were so numerous they resulted in a case of verbal gridlock, the empath unable to say anything due to all the other quips vying for attention.

Cyborg was too distracted trying to adapt his systems to the sudden spike in ambient energy to notice much else.

Robin had been watching Raven's ritual with a level of scrutiny usually reserved for crime scenes and pieces of Slade's ABC gum, and thusly had been temporarily blinded by the initial flash.

Starfire was too entranced by Pentagram's entrance to say anything.

Therefore, it was left to Beast Boy to reply. "Oh, you know, not much, had breakfast, took a shower, DRAGGED OUR FRIKKIN' ASSES HALFWAY ACROSS THE WORLD SO WE COULD CONTACT YOU!"

"Oh, it's you guys." The incarnation of the Five Magics rubbed the back of his head awkwardly. "Sorry, what with gallivanting across the multiverse and all, I kinda forgot about you." He looked around, nodding approvingly. "So, got all five Moxen. Nice work. Now I believe a certain half-demon wanted her powers stabilized?"

With that, Raven approached him. "You better not need anything else," she muttered darkly, "because this was barely worth all the trouble these rocks have put us through."

Pentagram waggled his fingers in front of the empath a little, thought to himself, and replied, "No, this should be enough." With that, he cracked his knuckles, and drove his fingers straight into Raven's abdomen.

INTRIGONSRUMPUSROOMINTRIGONSRUMPUSROOMINTRIGONSRUMPUSROOM

Trigon sighed as he shuffled the cards telekinetically. Not only did he not enjoy repressing his powers so they would only move objects rather than atomize them, he was getting rather annoyed with one of his siblings.

"Rakdos," he began, "I know you're something of a sore loser, but I'd appreciate it if you _didn't_ incinerate the deck every time someone else won a hand."

The Lord of Rats scowled and fingered his few remaining chips. Each circular disk was actually a damned soul, pounded into roundness by the smiths of Hell, and it looked like Rakdos' more infernal cultists wouldn't have many victims torture after this game. "I just take pride in contests of luck and skill, that's all."

"You act like a petulant child with a flamethrower every time someone else gets a full house," Junior sneered. His hat had been scorched during one of the Defiler's earlier tantrums.

"Besides, we're down to the last deck," noted Martha, "and I handcraft these cards out of berry juice and the tanned, flayed skins of those who ran crooked casinos in their time on the material plane." She sighed. "Berry juice isn't cheap, you know."

"Thought I saw nostrils on the ace of spades," muttered Trigon, dealing out the new hand. His musings were interrupted by two glowing handprints, void black in color, manifesting themselves on the Terrible's pecs. They detached themselves from the archdemon's chest to form shadowy hands that grabbed him by his newly regrown antlers, and pulled. Trigon was quickly yoinked out of Hell, and his hand fell to the table.

The other offspring of Satan were silent and still for a moment, until Him examined Trigon's hand. "Royal flush," cooed the lobster-clawed fiend, "Just his luck."

"Wanna split his chips?" Nicky offered.

BACKWITHTHETITANSBACKWITHTHETITANSBACKWITHTHETITANSBACKWITHTHETITANS

"Raven!" cried Beast Boy, rushing for his love.

"Don't worry, BB," said Pentagram soothingly, "this isn't actually hurting Raven. Right, my dear?"

"Call me 'my dear' again," Raven replied dryly, "and you'll be the one hurting."

"See?" said Pentagram, now wrist deep within the empath's midsection, "Sarcasm. She's fine." The incarnation's eyes widened. "Oop. Got something. Hang on." He began to step backward, but slowly and slippingly, as though playing tug-of-war against a troop of gorillas.

Gradually, his hands exited Raven's body, but they didn't come alone. Pentagram's fingers were driven deep into what appeared to be antlers. As the humanoid energy continued to struggle backwards, the horns gave way to white locks that sprouted illogically from Raven's front. Eventually, the familiar, enraged visage of Trigon the Terrible sprouted forth from his daughter.

"Dude!" exclaimed a rapt Beast Boy, "this is like some sick, twisted version of that one scene from _Alien_!" Each Titan without his or her father's head sliding out of his or her inguinal region nodded slowly.

With a shouted "HEAVE!" Pentagram plucked the rest of Trigon out of Raven's form like a stubborn weed. The massive demon crashed into the bay, sending a huge wave over the island and Jump City's coast. (Thankfully, it was the weekend, and no dockworkers were present at the time.) Dusting off his hands, the magical being wiped his forehead and smiled. "Not bad, if I do say so myself." He considered this. "Which I just did."

"Uh," Cyborg articulated, "How'd you pull a sixty-foot demon out of a four-foot girl?"

"Four foot five, thanl you very much." said Raven, happy to latch on something normal to scorn.

"One, though the prophecy was debunked, Raven is still the Portal of Trigon," explained Pentagram, seamlessly dropping in the capitals, "Two, since I had access to his interdimensional portal, the necessary knowledge, and the prerequisite energy, I was able to summon forth Trigon unto this realm." Noting the confused looks on not just Beast Boy's face, but Starfire's and Robin's as well, he clarified. "Father and daughter are connected. I used that connection."

"And since you have," began Trigon, rising from the sea like a crimson Godzilla, "I shall once again lay claim to this universe! The Time of Mortals has ended once-"

"Oh, shut up," Pentagram said testily, waving his hand. In moments, Trigon was bound and shackled in white energy. Pentagram floated over to the even more furious demon. "Be thankful I didn't put a muzzle on you."

Trigon's response to this was another one for the Shift key and the top row of your keyboard.

"On second thought," said the magical entity, and with these words came a white energy ball gag, silencing the archdemon's expletory tirade.

("Robin," Starfire said, "you must tell me the meanings of the many loud and angry words Raven's father said before the Pentagram silenced him."

"Err, now _really_ isn't the time, Star," Robin responded.)

"Now then," Pentagram began, "here's the situation. Your daughter has found a boyfriend. She would like very much to feel unbridled love for him without running the risk of caving his skull in. You are going to allow her to feel emotion without fear of destroying her surroundings, and I," with this he raised a hand roiling with white energy, "will not purge you from existence. Oh, and let me just remind you that by forfeiting all but your genetic link to Raven, you forfeit any influence you might have had over her kids. Or spawn, depending on your outlook." Pentagram drew back the white-charged hand, now a fist glowing with more white energy than a Deep South country club. Grinning maniacally, Pentagram asked, "Deal?"

All four eyes watering and widening, Trigon nodded desperately.

The maniac grin quickly shifted to a satisfied, sane one. "Good!" With that, Pentagram rose up to Trigon's face, and flicked the archdemon's monumental nose with a blue mana-charged index finger. The Terrible One was returned to the infernal planes with a sound best recorded as "poof."

Returning to the Tower's roof nonchalantly, Pentagram turned to Raven once more. Raising his hand, he smiled and said, "Now that that's taken care of-"

"Hold it!" All eyes turned to Beast Boy. "You aren't gonna stick your hand in her again, are you?"

"I assure you, my good changeling," replied the incarnation of five magics, "the only ones sticking things in Satan's favorite granddaughter henceforth will be you and her gynecologist." Now that everyone else present (Starfire excepted,) was thoroughly embarrassed into silence, Pentagram proceeded.

Waving his hands out, he called the Moxen to him. The gems obeyed immediately coming to his left hand. With the right, he gestured toward Raven. The empath's jeweled belt unclasped itself and came to the extremity. Raising both hands in the air, Pentagram intoned, "Let the relics of the past be forged into the treasures of tomorrow! RESHAPE!"

With this, the Moxen and Raven's belt came together, and emitted a brilliant, yet colorless light. As the nonchromatic glare faded, Raven's belt had only five circular gems on it, but each was one of the colors of Pentagram's magic. As the accessory reattached itself around the sorceress' waist, its creator smiled and said, "One power-regulating, Moxen-powered magic belt, made to order. Wear it for about a month, and your powers will be stable for well over a century."

"A…century?" gasped Raven, examining her new belly band.

"Part of the whole demonic gene suite is incredible natural longevity," said Pentagram. "On average, a half-demon with your sort of pedigree is guaranteed about five hundred years of life. Plus, you'll age like an elf." The expression on Raven's face made it clear clarification was needed. "Quick puberty, but after that your biological clock runs at a massively decelerated speed."

"Cool," said the empath, allowing herself a small smile. A realization then hit her like a Cinderblock sandwich. "What about Beast Boy?"

Pentagram came closer to her and whispered. "As long as he keeps eating, exercising, and altering his species like he does now, the grass stain may actually outlive you," he said, "Just don't let him eat any more meat. Any foreign animal DNA introduced into his system will further destabilize his own genetic structure, and I don't think you want to be making out with a puddle of primordial soup anytime soon."

"Why are we whispering?" Raven asked softly.

"Because knowing him, if I let him know he was functionally immortal, he'd become ridiculously reckless and end up getting himself killed within a week. You don't want that, and I try to ensure my clients' satisfaction."

The incarnation then moved away from the empath and turned to the shifter. "BB, be careful, stay healthy and keep using your powers, and you and Raven will enjoy your golden years together." Turning back to Raven, his smile widened. "Now then, there is the small matter of your new wish."

Raven blinked in surprise. "New wish?"

"Yup. The control I just granted you was what you wished for last time, and you followed the procedures necessary to attain it. You summoned me again, and are therefore entitled to another wish. What will it be?"

Raven considered her options for a moment, but her thought processes were interrupted by a number of her emotional avatars. Pink, orange, purple, yellow and green all gathered together to inform her of her subconscious desire, and a few accessory tidbits that would help. Blushing, the empath whispered this new wish to Pentagram.

"Oh ho," said the incarnation, waggling his auric eyebrows.

"Just shut up and do it," muttered the flushed half-demon.

With a snap of fingers, a manipulation of red and blue energies, and a cry of "Done!" Pentagram did as bidden. "Have fun," he said with a wink, and faded away from the Titans' reality.

"Well," said Robin, "that was an interesting way to spend an afternoon."

Cyborg nodded his assent. "Not every day you get to see a human light show and your friend's dad is yanked out of her."

"Indeed," Starfire said hesitantly, "But, where are friends Beast Boy and Raven?"

As the two boys quickly found, their teammates were unexpectedly absent from the roof. When Robin attempted to find them via locator, an apparently prerecorded message played on his communicator:

"Hi. This is Pentagram, Master and Incanration of the Five Magics, Fist of the Suns, etc., etc. The person or persons you are attempting to find are not currently in your dimension. I've placed him, her, gender-neutral third person singular direct object pronoun, or them in a pocket plane as part of his, her, gender-neutral third person singular possessive pronoun, or their wish. He, she, gender-neutral third person subject pronoun, or they should return shortly. Thank you for using Pentagram, granter of wishes since time immemorial."

The message began to repeat itself until Robin shut his communicator. "So," said the leader, "anyone want pizza while we wait?"

JUSTOUTSIDETHEDCUNIVERSEJUSTOUTSIDETHEDCUNIVERSEJUSTOUTSIDETHEDCUNIVERSE

As Pentagram moved away from the plane of existence he just left, he was reminded of an important final errand. He quickly found what he was looking for, orbiting the greater structure of the hypersphere he'd just exited.

"I'm surprised they never noticed," he said to himself, as he examined the spherical space in which he'd sealed all of the Titans' enemies to prevent an interruption of the search for the Moxen. Everyone from Dr. Light to Slade himself was within this space, stopped in time. With a simple flick of the finger, Pentagram sent them hurtling back to their home dimension. They'd arrive right where they'd been plucked from reality, with fabricated memories of taking the last few days off to prepare plans, vacation, or, in Control Freak's case, geek out at VillainCon '06.

"I love a job well done," Pentagram said to himself, and swam off into the æther.

WITHINTHEPOCKETPLANEWITHINTHEPOCKETPLANEWITHINTHEPOCKETPLANE

)-ACCESS DENIED-(

Well, that's odd.

"Sorry, part of the request."

What do you mean?

"'I wish I could be alone with Beast Boy to consummate our love without any outside observers.' That was her second wish, verbatim."

She never meant omniscient narrators when she said "any outside observers."

"Sorry, O.M., them's the breaks."

Jerk.

"End the story."

All right, all right. Readers, use your imaginations (or write a companion lemon.)

"I heard that."

Oop!

ENDMOXQUESTENDMOXQUESTENDMOXQUESTENDMOXQUESTENDMOXQUEST

Yes, so ends "Mox Quest." It's been really fun, but all things must end, including fan fictions. My thanks go to each and every loyal reviewer, and anyone else who enjoyed this story, whether you've silently followed it since its second inception or happened to find it buried in the ff archives. Feel free to draw inspiration from it, whether as that companion lemon, a continuation story, or even fan art. (Say, the Omega Beast vs. Mega Raven.) Just be sure to tell me you did it, so I can see it for myself.

Now then, I'll miss saying this: You had enough free time to read this tale. You have enough to review it. Thank you for that investment of your time, and may your own literary efforts be as rewarding as this has been for me.


End file.
